The Bard's Song
by Charlett
Summary: AU. A man known as The Shadow Master is searching for a woman worthy of singing The Bard's Song. Only a wizard, the prince of a kingdom, and a ragtag group of adventurers stand in his way. Can they stop him, or will the world fall to ruin?
1. Prolouge, Part 1

Alright! This is known as a gift! A gift for Digital Dreamer! Yay! I promised her a story on my own free will, and have been working on an Alternate Universe, which takes place in a world of swords and sorcery, something I LOVE (Dragon Quest! Wooo!). Because of this, I'm going to reintroduce the main characters. Grab a notebook and pencil: 

Prince Roronoa Zoro: The Prince of Treson, a Kingdom of overly handsome/beautiful people, and inept guardsmen. Zoro loves and is extremely protective of his sister, Princess Kuina, and will do whatever he can to protect Treson, the land he loves. He owns three Mastermade Katana, which represent his title (Of Prince), his Father (and ancestry), and himself. However many swords he owns, however, he is inept at swordsmanship. He does his best to learn how to become a good swordsman to protect Treson and Kuina.

Princess Roronoa Kuina: The Princess of Treson. She thinks of men as pigheaded, and only truly enjoys the male company of her brother, Prince Zoro. She is sassy, brassy, and two years older than Zoro! She has adopted a few unmannerly characteristics, a subconscious reaction to the fact that her father wants to marry her off. These characteristics are the only reason she is not married. She was blessed by God at birth, and can heal people like a Priestess, although she has had no training. When angered, she tends to beat the offender over the head with a parasol, and DAMN, it HURTS!

Monkey D. Luffy: A "Demon" who can cast Magic. It is well known that only humanoid monsters can use Magic, which is why people fear Luffy's powers. He never uses his powers unless in self defense, or when angered. He only is angered when someone hurts someone he loves (people that are in short supply), and when someone is in league with the "Shadow Master", who Luffy seems to hold a grudge against. Another gift Luffy possesses is the fact that his flesh has the consistancy of clay, and can be shaped easily, to change his face around. When using his normal face, Luffy enjoys digging a scar under his left eye, to give him a "Cool" look. The downside is that his flesh is easily bruised, and he cannot fight with hand to hand fighting, as the clay/flesh would get squished if he punched or kicked. He usually fights with his Magical Prowress.

WARNINGS INCLUDE: 

Slight Religious Themes. Nothing too preachy.  
Not Extremely Romantic. Most is fluff.  
Some "Scary Scenes". Nothing too graphic. 

READ ON!

--- 

Chapter 1 

The Demon and the Prince 

Zoro grumbled as he rested his hands against the banister of Castle Treson. Being the Prince of the entire kingdom was hard, especially when his father, the king, was too busy using his kingdom's money to hold fancy shmancy dinner parties rather than using it to train their own SOLDIERS… They were all so incompetent…

"Zoro…" Kuina, Zoro's sister and Princess of Treson, approached her brother from the direction of the most recent party. Behind her stood Chakra, one of the only competent soldier in the kingdom (the other was Bon Clay, a rather… unique… character), and Zoro's sword trainer and retainer. Kuina was older than Zoro by two years, but still tiny and adorable. She hopped up to the banister and leaned against it with her short arms. Her eyebrows rose as and she stared at her larger brother, a smirk on her face, "Zoro, why aren't you at the party with everyone else? They're missing you…"

Zoro suddenly snapped out of his nighttime stupor (He always was sleepy at night), and turned to his sister. With a smile, he fluffed her bangs back and stared into her eyes. They were so dark blue and shining. Since it was night, it seemed almost like her eyes were completely black. She giggled at his touch, and brushed his hand away, "Don't touch me, silly, I might catch something."

Zoro was taken aback, "What are you talking about?" He asked, flabbergasted.

Kuina gave her brother a half banked stare, "You look like you're going to fall off the balcony. You look like a wreck. I swear, you need to get more sleep."

"I don't…" Zoro replied, looking away, blushing a bit, "I'm just… always working."

"Ohhhh, let me swing this BIG SWORD around!" Kuina cried in a high pitched voice, impersonating Zoro. She began to pantomime, "This BIG SWORD will impress ALL the ladies! Hey ladies, wanna play with my BIG SWORD?"

Treson's prince slammed his hand on his sister's head, making her give a cry as Chakra laughed out loud, "Kuina!" He shouted in a hoarse whisper, "She'll HEAR you!"

Too late, "Oh Dahling, HERE'S where you were!" Zoro slammed his head on the banister as a rather drunken lady approached him. Lady Tashigi, daughter of Duke Smoker (Who, oddly enough, didn't seem to smoke much. It'd burn off his giant beard), approached the prince with a drunken giggle, "Oh, Dahling, why must you always disappeah at the most inopportune times? The danshing has already stahted!"

"Go on without me…" Zoro muttered, "I'll be there in a bit…" Tashigi cocked her head (Nearly making her fall over) to the side, and the prince lifted his head enough to place his chin on the banister, "I want to slit my throat before I do anything with you."

"Oh, Dahling, you're such a kiddah!" Tashigi giggled, swaying off towards the party again as Kuina laughed out loud.

"Damn, you really hate her, don't you?" The princess asked.

"Not as much as I wish I could hate you!" Zoro shouted playfully, grabbing his sister in a head lock. She cried "Brother abuse, Brother abuse!" as he gave her a noogie, mussing up her perfect hair.

---

Meanwhile, as the grasses in the plains surrounding Treson swayed in the nighttime breeze, one man in a cloak stared at the lights created for the party. He had been waiting for a long time. It was then that another person, tripping along daintily, approached the cloaked man. When the second man came into earshot, the cloaked man looked at the other, "You know what you must do, right?"

"Oh, of course!" The other replied in an annoyingly high voice, "Princess Kuina will be in my possession by tomorrow!"

"Where will she be by the night tomorrow?" The first asked, his patience with that annoying voice wearing thin.

"I am bringing her to my tower, in the north! No one will ever guess a kidnapping has taken place, Shadow Lord Master Sir!"

"Good… I will be going now. I will return in a week… By then…"

"Yes yes yes," Bon Clay replied as the Shadow Master turned, walking into the darkness, "Her voice will be ready for you by then, My Master… I promise…"

---

The Next Morning…

"Good morning, Zoro!" Kuina cried from the breakfast table as Zoro arranged his hair (By rubbing his hands through it) and sat down at the giant table. Bon Clay and Chakra stood behind the two royals as they waited for the two cooks, Carne and Patty, to prepare their food. Zoro yawned and rubbed his eyes, and Kuina gave him another half banked stare, "I swear, you should hibernate in winter."

"Very funny," Zoro responded, too tired to think up a better counter. It was at that time that breakfast was served, and the two didn't share another word as they tore voraciously into their food. Bon Clay cocked his head to the side in an attempt to dodge the bone that Zoro threw behind him. He hadn't counted the fact that it was an entire chicken, and it clipped him on the side of his face. Ahhh, the joys of taking care of someone else's children…

"Oh, guess what I heard?" Zoro said as he finished up his last biscuit, "Dad's trying to get you another suitor."

"Joy," Kuina said, smiling at the remnants of her food. She had picked up her eating habits from Zoro, and from then on, no man would ever approve of her being HIS wife, "It's not fair. You don't have to move away from here when YOU get married."

"Hah, I'm never getting married," Zoro replied, standing up, "Women are boring and stupid anyway." He winced when he saw Kuina's look, "Except for you, of course."

"Too bad inbreeding was abolished two hundred years ago," Kuina laughed jokingly, "Then I wouldn't have to leave!"

"Ha ha ha ha no," Zoro replied, smacking his sister upside the head as he walked off with Chakra to go practice his sword skills.

Bon Clay remained with the princess as she brushed the plate away and folded her arms, placing her head on the table, "No fair… Zoro's so lucky to be a man. I don't want to get married off like I was some prize for a moron who probably has a dozen mistresses anyway."

"You don't have to, Lady Kuina…" Bon Clay said, smiling. Kuina smiled at her retainer, and he sat down in the chair Zoro was in a moment ago ("Oh, it's still warm!" The guard said), "You don't have to do anything you don't want to do."

"But what can I do instead?" Kuina asked, her cheeks puffing up dangerously. She stiffened when Bon Clay placed his hand on her shoulder, his clownish grin plastered on his face.

"Let's take the day off. Let's head to my tower. I need a guest anyway. It's so dreary without anyone to entertain there…" The guardsman said. Kuina smiled.

"Bon Clay, you have a reindeer pet that'll keep you company," She pointed out as she stood, the guard standing with her. She allowed him to take her hand as he led her out of the castle.

"Oh, Lady Kuina, you injure me!" Bon Clay cried, "My Chopper is just a reindeer. He cannot speak! I want a friend to talk to!"

"Alright, but only for you," Kuina replied, smiling. She let her retainer lead her out of the castle and off to his tower in the north…

---

"One, Two… THREE!" Chakra shouted, getting exasperated as the prince fell flat on his face. He was such a moron when it came to swordsmanship… "Master Zoro, if you cannot concentrate, then perhaps we should call it a day…"

"No!" Treson's Prince shouted, leaping back up to face his retainer, "I'm not going to stop until I'm as good as you, Chakra! How else can I protect the kingdom?"

"My Lord…" Chakra moaned. His young lord was such a pain sometimes, "Please, take the day off. Go relax in the Sun Room or something…" Chakra suddenly opened his eyes and gasped at what wasn't before him. Where did Prince Zoro go? Chakra looked around, and spotted Zoro hopping the castle walls, "My Lord! I didn't say you could leave the castle! My LORD!"

Zoro dropped to the ground and willed the pain in his legs to go away. Chakra had always told him to take the day off, and this time he decided he was going to do something different. Sure, he'd take the day of, but he'd check out Treson Town instead of moping about the castle. He slunk off in an effort to make sure he wasn't caught. Oh man, Kuina would be so jealous when the guards dragged him back home and he could tell her what HE did today! This was so much better than just hanging outside on balconies during his father's parties!

"Well, Treson Town, here I come!" Zoro said, sheathing his final sword (As he had three at his waist, one to signify his Status, his Father, and himself, respectively). He jogged off, the village getting bigger as he approached it. He was about to enter the town after a brief (Five minute) jog, when suddenly he nearly was sent sprawling to the floor when an explosion just inside town made the earth shake. The prince just barely regained his footing when he saw some men chasing down a young man. He looked kind of ragged with only a red vest and some frayed shorts. He was grabbing onto his straw hat like it was the last thing on the planet.

"Wizard! Get your ass back here, monster!" One of the pursuers shouted.

"I'm really really REALLY sorry I blew up your bar!" The boy cried behind him as he continued to run. Zoro watched the scene unfold, and hardly realized it when the boy passed right by him. He turned and stared into the boy's black, shining eyes; time seemed to stop right there. They were so big, as if he were drinking in the world around him, not wanting to miss a moment in his life. He seemed so… different from Zoro's squinty eyed expression. In only a moment, time restarted as the boy zoomed past the prince, "Excusemesorrygottagobye!" He shouted, waving at the oncoming townspeople. Zoro stared at the boy like he had never seen a young male before (Although really, he had seen the young, incompetent recruits before…).

"Who was that person…?" Zoro asked breathlessly as the townspeople stopped by the prince's side to catch their breath.

"THAT…" The first said, pointing at the retreating figure, "Is Monkey D. Luffy… He… He's a demon…" Treson's Prince's head turned, and he continued, "He's a wizard… He can use… Magical Powers…"

"Magic…?" Zoro breathed. But that couldn't be possible! "Only Monsters can use Magical Powers." He started reciting from his school texts, "That's what separates Goblins from Humans."

"Which is why he's a demon," A second man, a baker probably, said, "I'd advise you to avoid him… Although it's hard… He keeps changing his face." Zoro gave a face. Just thinking about… Making yourself look different with magic… Seemed unnaturally ugly.

Suddenly a third man gave a cry, "Why… You're Prince Roronoa Zoro!" He shouted. Zoro sweat a bit. So much for hoping no one would recognize him… "Wait here, Master Zoro, I'll go collect the guardsmen and have you brought back to the castle.

"No! No, waiiiiiiiit…" Zoro gave up as the men started running off. He sighed and kicked the dirt with his expensive, high class, princely boot. Dammit, he didn't even get to set foot in the town!

---

Meanwhile, Luffy took a deep breath, trying not to pass out. He really had to stop running so fast, so long. He really was too frail for those kinds of aerobics. He collected himself and rubbed sweat from his forehead; his skin being dragged as he pulled the sweat with his hand. With a whine, he pulled a mirror from his pocket and rearranged the skin on his forehead. His flesh seemed to have the consistency of clay, and could be reshaped at a moment's notice. His brows knitted in the mirror, "Some gift," He muttered, snapping it closed and placing it back into his pocket. When he finished, he turned towards the town, and smiled, "Well, at least I was fed. Man, was I hungry…"

His stomach growled, and the boy whined again, "I'm still hungry…" He sat down and thought up what he should change his face to next time. A light bulb switched on in his head, and he worked furiously to make himself unrecognizable. He pulled his mirror back out and checked his face. He suddenly gasped, and fingered his face. Why, he looked just like that guy he saw outside of town! He hadn't really meant to do that. He never STOLE people's faces. Somehow, it felt like stealing the person's identity. Working his claylike face once again, he suddenly realized he returned his face to its normal form, the way it was formed by the Creator. How long had it been since he looked like he should be? "Way too long," He answered himself out loud. He touched his cheek, his left cheek, and suddenly had a thought he didn't really notice until he said it out loud, "I want to show someone…"

Snapping the pocket mirror closed, he hopped up, and smiled. He never denied his whims; it would make him a sad person, later on in life. But the question was who to show his face to? "What about that mercenary?" He asked himself, "He seemed interesting, like there was something special about him. Well, aside from that cool cape and those three swords. Who carries around three swords at once, anyway? He was weird…" He laughed a very distinctive laugh (Sounded kind of like "Heee heee heee"), and wandered back to Treson Town. These townspeople hadn't seen his face like this, anyway. They were really gullible; they didn't realize he wore the same cloths every time he visited with another face! People were funny like that, sometimes.

Monkey D. Luffy arrived back in town, and looked around the place. He recognized everyone in town, mostly because he and that mercenary were the last two visitors to Treson Town in such a long time. He figured it'd be a piece of cake to find the mercenary with green hair, but to no avail. Where was that man? "Hey, Miss," He stopped a random girl and smiled at her. She stared at the scar he had under his left eye… "Where's the guy with the green hair and three swords that came in here?"

"Green hair…?" The girl asked, "Three… swords?

"Oh! Prince Zoro came here very recently and they alerted the guards. He went home right away."

The girl smiled at the boy, but stopped smiling when the boy continued to stare. She waved her hand in the boy's face, "Um… Sir…?"

"Prince… Roronoa… Zoro?" Luffy asked. She nodded and he twitched once, then snapped out of it and smiled, "Thanks a lot, Miss!" He twirled around and ran off, waving, "Bye!" She waved back, and smiled a bit, walking off. Luffy seemed to not have noticed the fact that his brain melted down for a moment. To think, that cool guy in the armor with the cape and the silly circlet was a prince! Well, maybe with that weird circlet, it was easy to tell…

It was practically night by now, so Luffy staggered over to the inn, still feeling out of sorts for running around that day. He was so tired; he stumbled into the inn, and waved at the keeper, who looked rather angry at life. But who didn't nowadays, with Gargoyles rampaging and Mermaids being killed and Goblins casting Magic and scorpions growing to be as big as your dog? This world was heading to hell in a handcart. Too bad there weren't big, awesome people around to save it from darkness. Those people were only in Fairy Tales, the normal people said. Luffy wondered if it was true…

"Are you going to stay in the doorway forever, or are you going to rent a room?" Luffy was snapped from his thoughts when the man gruffly asked the boy his question. The wizard searched his other pocket for some Gold Coins, the currency in the world. He placed two small coins on the counter, which the man grabbed, "Now get lost."

Luffy smiled, "Thank you, Mister!" He said, trotting towards the stairs that lead to the three rooms that the owner ran. He opened the door of the first and poked his head in, "Is this my room?"

"AIIIIIIEEEEEK!"

"Nope," Luffy chuckled, closing the door. He opened the next one, and, noticing it was empty, went to the nearest dresser and opened it up. He found a potion! "Nope, this isn't my room," He said matter-of-factly, taking the potion as if it were his. He left to check the last one. It was also empty, but nothing was in the dresser. He hopped on his bed and snuggled under the sheets, "Good night!" He said to no one in particular as he drifted off into sleep.

---

Sunlight filtered through the windows after six seconds of music with the lights on. Luffy opened his eyes and stretched, "Ahhhh, that felt good!" He said, hopping from the bed. He stretched a bit and looked left and right. He then skipped from the room. He passed by a young woman, and as he tipped his hat to her, she slammed her hand on his head,

"Pervert!"

"Yup," He said, rubbing the goose egg and reapplying his straw hat, "She was the one changing…" He walked down the stairs, where the innkeeper was. He grumbled at Luffy's smile, still mad at life. Luffy turned to the side, and saw a man checking around the main room.

"Where could my potion be?" He whined, "Just my luck another adventurer had to go and steal it…" The wizard looked at the man, who looked so pitiful, and shrugged, walking from the inn. He looked around the place, still thinking about that prince. Maybe he should ask that guy the next time they met if he could try on that circlet… Well, maybe not, it'd be hard to fit around his hat…

"My God! My God!" Luffy whirled around quickly as a watchman rushed past him, towards the Town Crier's house, which was outside, waiting for news to cry through the town about. Taking the letter, the Town Crier read through the note, and suddenly gave a shout. He rushed from his house, holding the letter high above his head, "Everyone, terrible news! Terrible news, Princess Roronoa Kuina has been kidnapped! KIDNAPPED!"

---

"Kidnapped?" Zoro cried, staring at the messenger who was telling Chakra the terrible news. It couldn't be true! Why ever would Bon Clay kidnap the prince's sister? It just didn't make sense!

"Lady Kuina was brought to Bon Clay's tower. He's released a letter to His Highness that she will remain there for the next week. He demanded it in the letter, and His Highness is Livid," The messenger said, "Master Chakra… He has demanded that you return Lady Kuina…"

"I'll go…" Chakra said, sheathing his sword. Zoro gasped as his retainer summoned for a horse and strode off, "There is no way I will let him keep My Lady like she were some normal peasant girl."

"Chakra…" Zoro said, rushing after the swordsman, "I… I want to go with you! I need to help save my sister. Chakra, let me come too!"

"I refuse," The retainer said, mounting a horse, "Remain here and wait for your sister's and my return. I doubt you will need to know what I will do with Clay…" Zoro was about to protest, but Chakra had already hitched the horse up, and the beast galloped off. Zoro stared at the guardsman as he left, and the young prince's clenched his hands into fists. The messenger was about to speak, but Zoro was already walking towards the castle walls. Oh crap! Why was the prince disobeying Chakra?

"Lord Zoro!" The messenger shouted as Prince Zoro threatened the guards at the gate with an untimely and messy demise; they allowed the prince through, "Lord ZORO!"

"Hey, if you have the time to cry," Zoro said to the messenger, "You have time to tell Father that I'm going to save my sister." He gave the exasperated messenger a Zoro style smirk, and rushed off. The messenger decided to write up a will before going to the king…

---

Zoro looked at the tower up north. It was so far away, and Zoro was getting bored of walking. He should have grabbed a horse like Chakra. He looked around; he could have sworn he heard a rather loud buzzing. He whirled around and ducked just in time as a giant stinger attempted to slam into his forehead. Looking up, his jaw dropped when he saw that the attacker was a giant… giant… wasp. How the hell did something get that big? Drawing out his favorite Katana, the one signifying his Title, Prince of Treson (It was named Wadou Ichimonji, which was to point out that the Prince of Treson was the one man who could lead Treson into harmony and prosperity), Zoro prepared to defend himself. He had never fought something that was so fast before, however…

The giant wasp attacked before Zoro could attack first. The prince nearly fell over trying to avoid the strike. The next attack DID make him fall over, and the third attack nearly hit if the prince hadn't rolled out of the way. If that thing hit, it could pierce into his heart like a dagger strike! "Dammit," Zoro shouted, swinging once to make the wasp back off for a moment, "How the hell do you fight one of these monsters?"

"Like this!" A familiar voice called out, "Fire!" Zoro ducked as a sudden head wave passed over his head. There was a scream, and the wasp was reduced to a cinder in a mere minute. Zoro stared as the fire seemed to stay in the air, turned into a ball, and fizzled out of existence, as if its sole purpose was to annihilate the wasp. He turned to the side and stared at some sandals in the grasses, "Jeez, you have three swords, and you don't even know how to use any of them…"

"You little bastard, do you know who I am…?" Zoro stopped his question when he looked up, staring at a boy with a straw hat, red vest, and frayed pants. The boy smiled and Zoro sat up, staring at his face… It was completely different from when he noticed it before, but it was much brighter, happy, fun loving… Then why did he have a scar under his left eye?

"Yeah," Monkey D. Luffy, the demon wizard said, placing his hands on his hips, "You're Prince Roronoa Zoro, Prince of Treson, right?"

TO BE CONTINUED…

---

Please like it, Digital Dreamer! I worked hard on it! Heeeee


	2. Prolouge, Part 2

Hello everyone! The second installment of "The Prince and the Demon", a gift for Digital Dreamer is up! Hurrah! Everyone, leave lots of reviews and then check out some of Digital's really great stories! You'll love them, promise!

Reintroducing:

Chopper: Is a handsome reindeer from the frostbitten lands to the East (amazingly, not the North), and Bon Clay's pet. He doesn't seem to be anything special, just a normal reindeer who loves his master. That is, until Luffy...

WARNINGS INCLUDE:  
Really bloody battle. Be careful!  
Really long chapter. Wanny cry about it? FINE.

So without further ado, READ ON!

---

The Prince and the Demon  
Chapter 2

"You're Roronoa Zoro, the Prince of Treson, right?" Monkey D. Luffy, known through the Treson Plains as a Demon wizard of unimaginable power. Prince Roronoa Zoro, Prince of Treson, stared at the boy, his eyes wide.

"Y… Yeah…" Zoro murmured, staring at the smiling boy. It was so unlike a demon to smile in that way. He wasn't ready to eat anyone or anything, he just looked… happy… "Why… Why are you… smiling so much?"

"Because you're safe," Luffy replied, dropping into the tall grasses next to the prince, who was sitting up, "That wasp almost hurt you, and I was worried for your safety. I was looking for you, anyway."

"Looking for me?" Zoro rubbed his head, not understand.

"Yeah, you see," Luffy went into his explanation, his smile widening, "I was making up my face, and I didn't realize it, but I made myself look like YOU!" Zoro blinked, and Luffy continued, "I didn't mean to. You're cool and all, but I never steal another person's face. I thought, 'If I thought most about you, I might as well show you my real face!'" Zoro blinked, pointing at Luffy's face, "Uh huh, this is my face! Isn't it awesome?"

"What… about that scar? You can change your face, can't you? It doesn't make any sense that you'd keep that scar!" Prince Zoro said, motioning towards the scar under Luffy's eye.

"This?" Luffy gave a funny giggle. Zoro gulped at it as Luffy pointed at his scar, "I put it here on purpose. When I was little, I got attacked by a monster. It was a Giant Slicer Fish!" Luffy showed off how big it was with his arms, "My guardian saved me from it, and from then on, I've had this mark! I would never get rid of it, just because it's so cool!" Zoro didn't understand. Any facial blemish in Treson was terrible (seeing as how they were all unnaturally beautiful, he couldn't think of marring his perfect face), and Zoro was extremely put off by the scar, either way. Although, perhaps Luffy was right, it did add a certain charm to the boy… Luffy hopped up, wiping his rear off, and smiled at the prince, "Well, where are you going, anyway? Aren't princes supposed to stay inside their castles?"

Zoro growled as he stood, "You make me sound like a prissy little princess." He waited for Luffy to say, "I didn't mean THAT!" But his frown only grew when Luffy's smile widened as far as it could; looking much like it couldn't even happen (must be that strange flesh of his). Zoro smacked the boy upside the head with a grunt of annoyance as Luffy made that funny giggle again.

"It was a joke," Luffy said, his eyes closing from his wide smile, "Ouch… You hit hard…" He looked up at Zoro, and smirked, "I think that's going to leave a bruise."

Zoro was going to point out that he was probably saying that to make the prince sorry for the wizard, but the smile Luffy made seemed to make Zoro pull back that statement. Zoro watched as Luffy reapplied his hat, and the prince sighed, "I'm sorry…"

"It's okay," Luffy replied, waving away his apology, "Having clay for flesh makes it that way. I'm used to it."

There was silence for a bit as Zoro continued walking towards his destination, Luffy following, and suddenly the prince gasped, "Oh yeah! I forgot, I was going to tell you where I was going."

"Congratulations, Sherlock," Luffy said, smiling. Zoro was about to smack the boy upside the head again (he was so used to doing it to Kuina), but stopped before he did any permanent damage to his new friend.

"See that tower?" Zoro asked, pointing. Luffy was about to point out that one could see it from a few days away, but held his tongue as Zoro continued, "My sister's retainer, Bon Clay, has kidnapped her. I intend on rescuing her, no matter what my retainer says."

"Boy, you're sure you should do that?" Zoro looked at Luffy and the boy smiled, "You see, you have three swords, you know how to use NONE of them, and you intend on storming a tower, which, being alone, is like storming a keep. You won't make it."

"Then what do you suggest I do, moron?" Zoro shouted, getting mad at Luffy's matter-of-fact way of speaking.

"You let me come with you!" Luffy said, making the prince stop walking. The wizard smirked, "If you take me with you, I swear to you, you will get your sister back."

"Luffy…" Zoro murmured, staring into the boy's eyes. Not one trace showed that the boy was lying, or even stretching the truth. The boy brought with him full confidence in his abilities. Nothing would make him back down from whatever he said. It was a simple thing, but it gave Zoro a smile. A smile that showed that he trusted the boy wholeheartedly, a smile that soon faded…

When a throwing dagger flew from the way of the tower, slamming into Luffy and knocking the boy back. Zoro cried out his friend's name as Luffy dug his feet in the ground to keep from sliding even further, "Dammit…" Luffy murmured, dragging the knife from his left shoulder, "I was… careless…"

"Halt, evildoer!" Zoro and Luffy looked up at the attacker, and the prince's eyes widened. It was Chakra! "What are you doing with Prince Roronoa Zoro?"

"I've been escorting him to the tower to…"

"SILENCE!" Zoro cringed, because whenever he was little, whenever Chakra made THAT tone, he was mad, and the prince expected beatings to commence. He looked up, and realized as Chakra drew his sword, that the beatings were to be directed towards Luffy. He had to stop Chakra from hurting Luffy! "You Demon, I will…"

"Chakra, stop! Luffy's not a Demon!" Zoro shouted, standing in front of Luffy. Chakra dismounted his horse, "I… I order you to stand down, as the Prince of Treson!"

Chakra slapped Zoro across the face with his free hand, and Luffy gave a cry as Zoro stumbled a bit, "Stand down, Your Highness," He said, "You are delusional."

"Like HELL he is!" Luffy shouted, drawing his hands together. Zoro turned and saw as lightning cackled in between his palms, "You hurt your own prince! You're no better than that guy who kidnapped his sister!"

"Luffy!" Zoro shouted as Chakra reached his sword out, preparing to strike.

"Lightning!" Luffy reached out and touched the blade of the sword with his index finger, and all the electricity stored within his hands traveled down the sword and zapped Chakra incessantly. Zoro gave a cry and covered his eyes as the light got bright enough to hurt retinas. Chakra screamed and eventually dropped to the floor, sizzling from the magic strike.

"Luffy, what the HELL did you do?" The prince screamed.

"Don't worry," Luffy replied, smiling, "Not like I KILLED him. He hurt you. I returned the favor."

"But LOOK at him!" Zoro shouted, staring at his retainer as he coughed up a smoke mushroom, "He certainly LOOKS dead."

Chakra's horse sniffed the man, rubbed his head, and then grabbed the retainer by the back of the collar, dragging him off towards the castle to get some medical attention. Luffy smiled, "See? Animals know these things."

"You seem more like an animal than a human…" Zoro muttered as he saw poor Chakra get carried off, "He was only protecting me…" What if Luffy WAS a demon?

"Well, either way," Luffy said, shrugging it off, "Let's go on." He drew out a potion, the same one he "Stole" from the inn, and uncorked it. Zoro shuddered when he remembered how horrible the stuff tasted, and as Luffy downed it, he shivered from the terrible taste. The wound on Luffy's shoulder disappeared, strangely enough, so did the blood. Wiping his mouth, the wizard continued, "The longer we remain out here, the longer your sister is stuck with that retainer…"

"Don't worry, Bon Clay would never do anything to Kuina," Zoro said, smiling, "Trust me, she can get pretty scary if she gets angry…"

"Hopefully, you're right," Luffy said, looking worried for Princess Kuina's safety, "Come on, let's go!"

---

"Ahhhh…" Kuina murmured, smiling as she sipped her peppermint tea. She was in the top room of the tower, where a large guest room was prepared for her stay, "It's been a while since I was in such… quiet… Trust me, it's been a while."

Bon Clay smiled from across the table that the two were sitting at; he slurped his own tea, "Ahhhh… Indeed, Lady Kuina, such quiet is something to be treasured."

"Say, when are we returning to the castle?" Kuina asked, placing the teacup on the table and petting the small pet reindeer that belonged to her retainer. Bon Clay laughed in response.

"Lady Kuina," The traitor said, "Your father said you may stay here as long as you like when I contacted him this morning."

"Really?" Kuina said, stars appearing in her eyes. She smiled and leaned back, almost putting her feet up on the table (Something she enjoyed doing to put off most of her suitors); she stopped herself before she did, however. Instead, she continued to pet Chopper and smiled, "I wanna stay here some more."

"Stay here the rest of the week," Bon Clay said, smiling at the princess, who scratched the reindeer's back (Chopper seemed like the happiest animal alive), "I'm sure you'll appreciate it."

Kuina kissed Chopper on the top of his hat, "I'm sure I will…" She answered. Suddenly, Chopper's ears pricked up, and he leapt from Kuina's lap, rushing from the room. Something seemed to spook the poor animal, "Huh… Wonder what's wrong with Chopper?"

"I have no idea…" The guardsman replied, shaking his head, sighing a bit…

---

Luffy and Zoro arrived at Bon Clay's tower, looking up at the tall structure. Luffy's head cocked to the side, "It's certainly… tall…" He turned and looked at Zoro; his eyes moved down to his Katana, and he tisked a bit, "Hey, Zoro, you need to do something about those swords."

"What about these swords?"

"Come on!" Luffy said, "If you're going to do adventurous things like an adventurer, you have to have something… special about you. It's the adventurer rule!"

"But I'm a prince, not an adventurer!" Zoro said, exasperated. Seriously, wasn't this the kid who said they needed to save Kuina as soon as possible? Why was this suddenly important?

"No no no!" Luffy said, shaking his head, "Being a prince doesn't matter! If you're going on an adventure, you're an adventurer, so you need to have something SPECIAL about you!" Luffy smirked, to reassure the Prince of Treson, "You have three swords! It'd be cool if you used all three!"

"'Cool'?" Zoro asked, blinking, "More like 'impossible'. I don't have three hands."

"Yeah," Luffy said with a shrug, placing his hands on his straw hat and entering the tower, "But you have a mouth, don't you?"

Zoro blinked at Luffy as the boy walked into the tower, and looked down at his three Katana, "My… mouth?" Shaking his head, he followed the boy inside.

"Now, we should be careful," Luffy told Zoro as they walked across the stone walkway to the stairs that led to the next floor, "You never know what kind of monsters are wandering around here…"

"What do you mean, 'monsters'?" Zoro asked, "Bon Clay lives here! Like there are random monsters running around…"

Zoro spoke too soon, for at that very moment, three short, humanoid monsters (Goblins, they were), popped out from the side, from behind a pillar. Raising their daggers, they began speaking in a strange language, known to Humans as "Monster Common" (as opposed to Common, their language). The prince was about to draw his sword, but Luffy stood in front of him, "Don't worry, wait a sec. I understand them…"

Zoro blinked as the boy smiled; it was something he was prone to do when reassuring the prince. He waited as Luffy turned to the Goblins and began to speak in that strange language that Zoro didn't seem to understand, "_Oi, you guys, what are you doing? You shouldn't be around here. How'd you get through the Dark Forest, anyway?_"

"_Master Luffy_," The one in the middle (The leader) said, "_What else can we do? Bon Clay has forced us under his power. We are powerless to fight against him, so there is nothing we can do but fight for him_."

Luffy licked his lips and Zoro saw that the boy looked agitated. It was surprising to see the boy look this worried, to say in the least, "_Please, let us through. We need to save Zoro's sister._" He motioned at the prince, making Zoro more confused, and continued, "_She's in danger. Let me through…_"

"_Forgive us, Master Luffy,_" The one in the middle cried. Zoro could tell that the four of them all were distressed, "_But we cannot allow that…_"

Luffy dragged the brim of his straw hat down, hiding the sadness in his eyes, "So be it," He murmured in Common, "_I have no choice then…_"

"_Neither do the three of us…_"

"Zoro!" Luffy shouted, preparing a spell, "Watch it, we're in for a rough ride, Prince Zoro. If you can, please," He turned to the prince, a tear in his eye, "Don't kill them…"

The Prince of Treson could not understand why Luffy was so sad. These Goblins were monsters! Demons! Associating with them practically made it so Luffy shouted to the world that he was the very monster everyone thought he was. However, for the first time in a long while, Zoro felt that he could listen to this boy, despite the fact that, being a prince, he knew he could blow off anything Luffy said. He drew the Wadou Ichimonji, and nodded, "Alright, Luffy. I promise."

The boy smiled, wiping the tear from his face (And rearranging his clay face back to normal afterwards), "Thanks…"

The Goblins rushed into the battle, and Luffy dodged out of the way from the attackers. The leader focused on Luffy, attempting to interrupt the wizard's magic, and the two underlings split off and flanked the prince, who looked spooked. There was no way he could guard against oncoming attacks from both sides with one sword! He gulped, realizing that he couldn't do it with one, but two…?

Drawing out the Sandai Kitetsu (symbolizing his ancestors, the three great demon slayers), he crouched down, preparing for the onslaught. He prided himself with his ability to defend, and although he couldn't fight that well, he was sure he could keep himself from getting hurt, especially since he was fighting for his life. His adrenaline began to rise as he fought off the two attackers, and even gave one a swift kick in the stomach. In a flash, he suddenly brought his Wadou Ichimonji to his mouth, and drew out the Yuba Shiri (Representing his pure heart on the day of his birth). He thought himself silly; moronic. Yet for some reason, Zoro knew this was the way he was going to fight for the rest of his life. Luffy was right, why have three swords when he wasn't going to use them all?

"Hurrah!" Luffy shouted, noticing Zoro's three swords, "It's Santouryuu!" Zoro was taken back a bit. He was using Santouryuu… the art of using three swords. It was definitely special, and he smiled with the Wadou Ichimonji in his mouth, feeling glad that he was accepted as a full fledged adventurer by Luffy. He promised himself he wouldn't let the boy down.

Zoro ducked under one of the Goblin's daggers, and raised his Yubashiri. Flipping it around, he slammed the back of the Katana into side of the enemy's head. The Goblin fell to the floor, knocked out. The prince smiled; he was able to fight and not kill! He was glad he could keep his promise to Luffy. Oh wait; there was one more to go.

"Ice!" Zoro heard Luffy cast a spell as he struck his two swords on the head of the second Goblin (with the back side of the Katana), knocking him out. Zoro then watched as Luffy adhered the leader to the floor with an ice block. Finishing up by brushing some dirt from his straw hat (It had fallen from the floor from the fight), and rushed towards the stairs, motioning for Zoro as he spoke in that Monster Common tongue, "_Sorry, but I have to go on! We'll defeat Bon Clay for you guys_!"

"_Master Luffy_!" The monster cried as Zoro sheathed his Katana and followed the fast moving clay man, "_Don't fight him! He's ruthless! You'll lose him!_"

"What did he say?" Zoro asked when he finally caught up to his friend. The wizard shook his head, refusing to speak another word. It made Zoro just what was going through Luffy's head as they climbed the stairs, faster and further. Zoro didn't realize it before, but most of the tower was just stairs, climbing higher and higher into the sky…

"Stop!" Luffy suddenly shouted on one of the floors, holding his arm out to stop Zoro. The prince ran into it, and nearly broke the clay flesh off as he fell into the arm. Luffy was able to pull it away in time, and Zoro dropped to the floor. The wizard smirked, "Oops, sorry…" Luffy started rearranging his clay hand to make it look less like someone barreled into it, and Zoro stood, "I had to stop you. There's treasure on this floor."

"Treasure?" Zoro asked as he wiped himself off, "One: How do you know? Two: Who cares?"

Luffy held up one finger, "One: There's two ways to go on this floor," He gestured to a random, off-the-beaten-path-pathway, "Usually this means there's a treasure chest at the end of the other pathway." Zoro sighed as Luffy held up his second finger (on the other hand), "Two: Adventurers NEED treasure! They LIVE off of it!" The prince sighed. It was another "Adventurer's Rule", apparently, "We need to find out what kind of treasure it could be! What if it's another Potion, or a HI-Potion? It could be a rare card that has my picture on it for some reason, or a sword that's better than all three of yours put together!" Zoro grabbed at his Katana for reinforcement. He really didn't like that last idea for treasure. Although, he didn't think that card with the Luffy picture would be too bad… He could keep a picture of the wizard around whenever he needed to… Wait, what was he thinking?

Zoro rolled his eyes as he followed Luffy off the beaten path, towards the "obvious" treasure dead end. Who the hell sticks treasures in dead ends anyway? That sounded stupid. His thoughts were interrupted as the stone statue to their right suddenly came alive! It was a golem! It brought its stone sword down upon them, and Luffy leapt back; Zoro had to dive to avoid the strike. "Aha!" Luffy shouted, "It's obvious that this is a guard that's protecting the treasure! Full speed ahead!"

Zoro pulled his Wadou Ichimonji out, and placed it in his mouth. He drew the other Katana out and rushed the stone guardian, to protect Luffy while he began to cast. He dodged, ducked and weaved, dodging every attack the golem threw at the prince. He felt his heart soar. He was MEANT for this kind of stuff, he could feel it. However, it would be nice for a bit of back up, "Luffy? You done yet?" He asked, his mouth moving ever so slightly, to keep Wadou Ichimonji in his mouth.

"Zoro, duck!" Luffy shouted, and Zoro ducked just as the golem attempted to hack off the prince's head, "Alright! Now, it's time to cast Ice!" The ice crystals showering from Luffy's hand stuck to the stone of the golem, "Okay, Zoro, take him out!"

The prince leapt up and drew his swords up, "Alright, time to try this out…

"Oni…" The prince sliced through the golem, striking at the ice that weakened the stone structure, "GIRI!" When the strike hit home, the golem fell to pieces, dropping to the floor. Zoro closed his eyes, and sheathed his swords silently and calmly. He took the Wadou Ichimonji from his mouth and turned to Luffy, who gave him a thumbs up. The prince smiled a bit. He didn't really want to be an adventurer… but he had to admit, it was pretty fun.

"Aha!" Luffy pointed at the generically random treasure at the end of the pathway. He approached the treasure, and Zoro blinked as the boy opened it, "All frikken RIGHT!" Zoro slammed his head on his palm as Luffy dragged out: "Some leather armor! I'm going to equip it right away!"

"You don't need to equip the armor; it's not like you…" Luffy finished equipping the leather armor, and Zoro rubbed his eyes. He then looked back at the equipment. That can't be possible, it had disappeared! "How does it look?"

"I can't see it…"

"PERFECT!" Luffy shouted, throwing his hands into the air. Zoro wanted to die, but Luffy didn't seem to notice Zoro's anger, and started back down the way, "Come on, Zoro! Don't lag!"

"C… Coming…" The prince groaned, following the wizard, rubbing his temple. This was almost too much work; he should have just gone alone…

"Alright!" The boy grabbed the brim of his straw hat, shivering with excitement as the two arrived back where they started, ready to climb back up the stairs, "We're ready to go! Come on, Zoro, let's…"

"Wait, Luffy," Zoro interrupted. Luffy gave the prince a question filled look, and Zoro pointed up at the top of the staircase. Standing at the top was an angry looking reindeer, "We have to go through Chopper first."

"Oh!" Luffy shouted, smiling, "A reindeer! It's so cool!"

"Careful, Chopper tends to have a…" Zoro was cut off as Luffy leapt up to pet the adorable reindeer. Zoro closed his eyes, "One… Two… Three…"

"OUUUUUUUUUUUUCHHHHHHHH!" Luffy screamed, attempting to shake Chopper off of his hand. The reindeer had bitten into Luffy's clay hand! "Zoro! Tell it to let go!"

"I tried to warn you, Chopper has a nasty temper," Zoro said matter-of-factly. Zoro knew Chopper, he was only six when Bon Clay brought a two year reindeer home from his journeys in the frozen wastelands to the east (strangely enough, not the north…). The animal practically became a royal family member, and was a favorite to visit the castle, so he could play with Zoro and Kuina. If anyone could get the reindeer off of Luffy, Zoro could… "Chopper, let the kid go…"

Chopper growled in response, and Luffy continued to struggle, "Um… Zoro, I don't know if you understand, but if this thing goes through my bone, I'm not going to have a hand left! And I'm PRETTY sure you need an X-Potion to heal something that bad!"

Zoro couldn't believe this. He sighed unhappily and grabbed at the reindeer's horns, "Chopper, you remember what I'll have to do if you don't let go, right?" The pet stared into Zoro's eyes, and Luffy wondered what was going through the animal's head. Suddenly, slowly, quietly, the pet released Luffy's hand, and Zoro let go of his horns, smiling, "See? Just show the guy who's boss."

"Well, now we can go on!" Luffy said, rearranging his clay flesh hand to make it look more like… a hand… After he was done, he started walking towards the stairs further on, but Chopper leapt in the way, growling. The wizard puffed his cheeks up, "What now?"

"I think Chopper's being a good guard dog," Zoro said, resting his hand on the hilt of his Katana, "We're breaking and entering."

"Hum…" Luffy rubbed his forehead in thought, "Well, if we make him harmless, then we can get by, right?"

Zoro shrugged, "I… guess…"

"Well then! I got it!" The wizard would have rolled up his sleeves if he possessed them, but wiggled his fingers either way, "I recently learned a polymorph spell! All I have to do is transform him into a Rabite!"

"What the hell are you doing?" The prince shouted, rushing forward to attempt to stop the wizard as Luffy released the spell, "LUFFY!" Another bright flash. Zoro wondered why the demons that used this stuff hadn't gone blind by now… The light faded, and Zoro blinked repeatedly. It was then that the prince's eyes bulged, "Luffy… What the hell… did you do?"

"Oops…" Luffy murmured, chuckling, "I guess I messed up!" Instead of a cute, yellow furred, footless rabbit, Chopper had transformed into a half reindeer, half humanoid… creature…

"Aiiiiiiiie!" The humanoid Chopper cried, rushing to a nearby pillar (tripping a few times while he was at it), and hiding behind it. Well… He hid behind it backwards. He hid his eye, and stuck the rest of his body out, shivering from head to toe, "Wha… What did they do to me?" The animal cried to itself in Common. Zoro chuckled a bit as Chopper muttered inanities in Common, not realizing the two could understand everything he said.

"Why can he speak our language?" Zoro asked Luffy as Chopper continued muttering to himself. Luffy shrugged.

"I didn't add anything to the polymorph spell," Luffy replied, whispering.

This put Zoro into deep thought, "Perhaps he knew Common all along, but just didn't have the ability to speak it until he became Humanoid. After all, God gave humanoids the gift of speech as a way of separating us from the regular animals," He suggested.

"Chopper can talk like us now?" Luffy suddenly shouted next to Zoro's ear, making it ring. He turned to the pet, "You're amazing, reindeer person thing!"

Chopper blinked, looking more relaxed, and grabbed the brim of his hat, smiling, "You moron!" He shouted, smiling happily, "That kind of stuff won't make me happy! Moron! I'm mad at you now, trying to suck up to me! MORON!"

Luffy chuckled, "He certainly looks happy."

"Chopper, we came here to bring Kuina back. Your owner, Bon Clay, has kidnapped her and refused to return her," Zoro explained, "We don't mean Bon Clay any… real harm. I just came to bring Kuina home."

"Lady Kuina?" Chopper asked, coming out from behind the pillar and holding onto his red hat for support, "But she doesn't want to go home! She said it's boring there! Bon Clay is being nice and letting her stay here!"

Luffy looked at Zoro, who looked a little exasperated. He was going to say something, but he noticed that the little reindeer was shivering. He looked so scared… The prince approached the reindeer and sat down next to him, "Hey, Chopper, why is Bon Clay letting Kuina stay here? You can tell me. We're friends."

Chopper smiled at Zoro, and Luffy sat down near the two, smiling. Chopper nodded at Zoro and settled down, adjusting his hat, "Well… I overheard… my owner… he was talking to this scary man… who had come to visit… He spoke with my owner… and talked to him about Kuina… I think he wanted to speak with her… or like, kidnap her or something…"

Zoro wasn't exactly sure what Chopper said, but Luffy spoke broken sentence language much better than he did, "Who was the person, Chopper? What did he look like?"

Chopper looked up at Luffy, and turned to Zoro. The prince smiled, as if to say, "You can trust him," and the reindeer turned back to the wizard, "He didn't say his name, and he was all dressed up in a dark robe…" Luffy nodded, deep in thought. Zoro wondered if the wizard knew more about what was going on then the prince knew, "I think… I think Bon Clay referred to him as 'The Shadow Master'."

Zoro looked up at Luffy, who began to stand, hiding his face beneath the brim of his straw hat, "Luffy?"

"Chopper…" Luffy said, turning to the stairs that led up, "Bon Clay is under his control. I suggest you leave now, because soon you won't have an owner."

"What are you saying?" Chopper cried, rushing to Luffy's side. He grabbed the boy's shorts and tugged, "He's my MASTER! He cared for me and loved me! What are you DOING?"

"What do you mean, Luffy?" Zoro asked, "I don't want him dead! Perhaps we can send him to jail. Perhaps we could…"

"No, Zoro…" Luffy murmured, closing his eyes, "Once you fall in league with the Shadow Master, there's no pulling yourself out…"

"How…?" Zoro murmured, not understanding what the boy meant, "Why?"

"Because," Luffy responded, looking up the stairs, his face filled with anger and malice, "I was the only one who did…" Zoro stared at the boy's eyes. They were different, totally unlike the bright, happy boy that made him want to smile. It was the fierce eyes… of a Demon…

"Luffy… What… are you?"

"Come on," Luffy said, taking the stairs, "We don't have any more time to waste. I'm going to kick that guy's ass and make him tell me where the Shadow Master is. I have a bone to pick with that bastard."

Zoro watched as Luffy walked up the stairs. He looked down at Chopper, who looked like he was going to cry. The prince sighed, and stood next to the pet, trying his best to smile reassuringly at the reindeer, like Luffy used to do. He failed miserably, "Don't worry," He said, "I'll do my best to make sure we don't have to hurt him."

Chopper nodded, still staring at the stairs where Luffy disappeared, "Please…" Was the only thing the pet could say. With his approval, the prince rushed after the wizard. No matter what, he'd save Bon Clay, just like Luffy saved himself…

---

"BON CLAAAAAAAY!" Luffy screamed, huffing and puffing as he reached the top of the tower. He entered a room with one more doorway, "Where the hell ARE you?"

"Luffy!" Zoro shouted, reaching the top of the stairs. He noticed that the boy was out of shape; Zoro was taking the jog much better than the wizard. Perhaps those rumors about wizards being frail were true… "Luffy, what are you doing? I bet the people in Kyrol can hear you!" He was referring to the desert town to the north, just beyond the Dark Forest.

"Oh, come now…" Came a strange, annoying drawl. The door opened, and the two boys stared at Bon Clay left the last room, where Kuina probably was, and closed the door behind him, "Lady Kuina and I were having such a nice conversation, and you just HAAAAAAAD to ruin it!"

"Shut it!" Luffy shouted, drawing his hands together, intent on casting another spell, "I'm going to kick your…"

"Luffy, stop!" The wizard gasped as Zoro rushed in between the two, his arms out, protecting Bon Clay like he had protected Luffy from Chakra, "I keep telling you, think before you act!"

"I don't have to!" Luffy responded, baring his teeth. Bon Clay seemed like he was thinking as Kuina opened the door to look in on the yelling (She heard her brother, after all!) "This is about my revenge!"

Zoro blinked at Luffy, staring at the boy. He couldn't believe it, "Luffy…" He murmured, dropping his arms, looking defeated, "I thought that you were better than that… Only Demons kill for revenge…"

Luffy stared at Zoro, his eyes wide. After all this time, he thought the prince didn't know about the way the world worked. Now he realized Zoro knew more than he let on. Luffy smiled at the Prince of Treson as Kuina closed the door behind her. The princess looked at Bon Clay, and her eyes widened when she saw that the retainer was drawing a broadsword, "Zoro! WATCH OUT!"

Zoro whirled around, his hand grabbing at the Wadou Ichimonji, but it was too late. The former guardian of Treson dashed towards the prince, and drew the sword up, right into the prince's chest, which went right through, nearly piercing Luffy's forehead as it stuck out the prince's back.

Time Stopped…

"ZORO!" Kuina screamed.

"No…" Luffy cried, his voice cracking, remembering what the Goblin said towards the entrance of the tower… That the wizard would lose him…

"Damn…" Zoro sputtered, blood flowing from his mouth as he hung limply on the traitor's sword, "I was… careless…"

"BROTHER!" Bon Clay drew the sword out of the prince's chest, but it wasn't like Zoro could breathe either way. It hurt more when he slammed to the ground than the initial strike occurred. Perhaps that was because he heard his sister sobbing. Damn it, he promised himself he'd return home with her…

"That… hurts…" Zoro gurgled, drowning in his own blood. He twitched for a second, and sweet, sweet unconsciousness took hold of him. He felt solace; he was going to meet God in Heaven…

"Zoro…" Luffy cried, long after Zoro was able to comprehend the fact that someone was speaking to him. The wizard grabbed his hat and shook all over, "Damn you, DAMN YOU!"

"Nya haaaaaaaaa!" Bon Clay cried, wiping Zoro's blood from his broadsword with the prince's own cape, "That's what happens when someone tries to take Lady Kuina away! The Shadow Master has something better in store for her! You'll never take her away!"

By this time, the princess' legs gave out, and she dropped to the floor. She was shaking all over, blood, blood, blood. Her brother was bleeding, dying, and she couldn't get to him. She couldn't even move, "Brother, Zoro, don't die, please!"

Luffy was staring at Zoro's body, as the pool of blood slowly but steadily got larger. The Prince of Treson was dead, dead, dead…

…Dead…

---

"_Daddy_!" Luffy had screamed all those years in the Common tongue of the Monsters as the only father he ever knew, the Goblin Chief of the Kyrol Goblins, dropped to the floor, blood flowing from multiple locations. The rest of the Goblins in the rather large village began hiding in their homes, afraid that the man's wrath would turn on them, "_Daddy, don't leave me_!"

"So… you are the boy that was raised by monsters…" The dark, shadowy Shadow Master said of the little boy (who was, at 8 years old, as tall as most of the adult Goblins, although much skinnier). He took a step over the Goblin Chief, holding up a gloved hand. It had a terrible aura of darkness, "One could say you're a Human raised by Demons."

"_You killed Daddy_!" Luffy cried, rubbing his eyes, his eyes filling with tears. The boy had no idea what the Shadow Master was talking about. He was speaking in Common, a language Luffy didn't understand, "_You terrible, TERRIBLE man! I'll KILL you_!"

Luffy rushed forward, his arms flailing, but the Shadow Master reached up and caught the boy's head in his hand. Luffy flailed, trying his hardest to hit the man, but he only laughed, "Perfect," He purred to himself, "Only Demons think 'murder' is a synonym of 'revenge'."

"_BASTARD_!" Luffy screamed, his eyes soaked with his own tears, phlegm spilling down his nose, nearly making his face too slippery for the Shadow Master to hold. Almost… "_Bring Daddy back! Bring him BACK_!"

It was then that he felt the enemy's dark aura take his poor, frail body over. He nearly choked on the dark energy and dropped to the floor, hacking and coughing, "_Wha… What did you do to me? What did you DO to me_?"

"_Silence_!" The Shadow Master shouted, making Luffy cringe, sobbing on the floor, "_I gave you a gift, Monkey D. Luffy, a gift that will protect you through your long years on this planet. I gave you my powers, so you can use magic as well as I_."

"_I don't_…" Luffy cried, distraught, "_I don't want it_…"

"_We all must live with things we do not want, Monkey D. Luffy. Some day, you will discover that the gift I give you, if you use it properly, can make you one of the most feared creatures on the planet_," He turned, and waved a bit as the boy stared in disbelief at the man as he left, "_And when that time comes, Luffy, you will return to me, and thank me, on bended knee. Such a pity I cannot see it today_…"

"_Daddy_…" Luffy cried, crawling to the Goblin Chief's unmoving body, mourning the death of the one he loved, "_Don't die, Daddy_…"

---

"Zoro…" Kuina cried, rubbing her eyes, bawling, "Don't die, Zoro…"

"You bastard…" Luffy growled once he heard the princess cry the same way he had 9 years ago, his fists clenching tighter and tighter, blood beginning to flow from his nail marks, "THIS is the gift you've given me? My friend… the only Human friend I've ever had is GONE!"

Luffy drew his hands together, a dark ball forming in his hand. The darkness was spreading, and the torches on the walls fell silent. Bon Clay could feel the power in the boy. He was enraged, "Bastard!" Luffy screamed, "If becoming a Demon is what I have to do to kill someone who hurt MY friend, then it's a SMALL price to pay!"

"Wh… What is goiiiiiiiiiiing on?" Bon Clay cried as Luffy continued his magical chanting. He was going to avenge his friend, once and for all…

"Dark!" He shouted, throwing the sphere directly at the former retainer. Kuina tried to get a good look at what the darkness would do to the enemy, but the entire room suddenly grew dark, cold, and frightening.

"Zoro!" Kuina screamed, her tears practically freezing as she cried, "Help ME!"

"It's okay…" Kuina heard the boy who had come with Zoro speak through the darkness, the only thing that proved she was still alive, "You'll be fine… I just… wish I could say the same thing about…"

"Who are you?" Kuina cried, knowing that only Demons cast magic like this, "Why are you here? What'll happen to my brother?" Before the boy could reply, the room returned to its normal state; the torches were even relit. The only difference was that Bon Clay had disappeared. The princess wiped the tears from her face, and crawled towards Luffy, her legs still unable to move, "What did you do to him?"

Luffy pursed his lips, refusing to smile, "I sent that man to a place he can never escape. I… I avenged your brother." Was all he replied. Kuina gave him a questioning look, and the wizard turned around, "I better go… You wouldn't want a Demon around, I'm sure."

The princess watched as Luffy descended the stairs, lowering his straw hat so the brim covered his eyes. She watched as he disappeared, and suddenly snapped into reality. Her brother was dying! "Zoro!" She shouted when she crawled to his side. She drew two fingers up and pressed them firmly against his neck. Nothing. She pressed harder, so much it almost bruised the neck. There! There was a flutter! Flipping the prince over, Kuina closed her eyes, mostly because she didn't want to see the wound, partly because she was going to pray, "Oh God," She cried, placing her hands over her face to hide her grief from the man who watched her from heaven. Like she could hide it… "Please, if you want… bring my brother back." She raised her hands, and she slammed them on her brother's chest, her tears flying like sparkles from her face, "Bring him BACK!"

At that moment Zoro felt a stabbing pain in his chest. Dammit, that hurt!

"Please!" Kuina screamed, staring at the wound. It was working, the wound was healing! "God, bring him BACK!" She pressed firmly on the chest wound, praying and asking and begging that Zoro wasn't dead from blood loss, "Lord God, PLEASE!"

It was painful. Someone was pressing down on his chest. He could barely breathe. Dammit… Zoro thought to himself, Oh God, get it off me!

"Lord God, you are the shepherd, we are the sheep," Kuina murmured, reciting the holy texts, "You give us all we need. You comfort us with your power. I have nothing to fear when you are with me. Please… Please, help my brother!" She couldn't heal anymore. Her power was totally tapped out. Anymore and she would be in worse shape than her brother. She fell over the prince, and sobbed, "God… Please…"

Her tear filled eyes suddenly widened when she felt a gloved hand reach up and place itself on her back, "Oi…" Came the groggy voice, "Please… get off me…"

The Princess of Treson drew herself up, and stared at her brother as his eyes opened. He smiled wickedly at her, "You need to lay off the chocolates, Sis… You're a little heavy…" He teased.

Kuina puffed her cheeks up, looking strange now that she was mad, but still crying. She tried to slap her brother, but it only came to be a weak tap, "Jerk!" She tried to shout, but she didn't have the energy anymore, and came out as a squeak. With a sigh, she flopped onto the blood soaked floor and wrapped her arms around her brother's neck. Kissing his cheek, she weakly muttered, "Thank you. Thank you, God…"

Zoro smiled, reveling in the fact that both he and his sister were safe. It was a miracle, "I couldn't have said it better myself…" He murmured, his eyes closed. Suddenly, he opened them, and sat up; hurting both himself and Kuina as he dragged her with him ("Ouch!" She cried), "Wait a minute… Where's Luffy?"

---

"Thank the Heavens!" Chakra (who was healed by the nuns and priests of Treson by this time) cried as Zoro and Kuina limped into the throne room, drenched in blood and shivering from head to toe. They never expected an adventure to be that scary, "You two are safe!"

Zoro refused to speak. The smile that he once held was gone. Ever since he heard from Kuina what Luffy said before leaving, he could not smile. Why? Because already, in the pit of his stomach, he missed the wizard. He wanted to see Luffy again, even if it were for one last time… "Why?" He had asked as he and Kuina limped back home through the Treson Plains (although Zoro had to fight a few monsters on the way back…), "Why did you go? Can't you see, I need you?

"I need you to teach me how to be an adventurer…"

"Your Highness?" Chakra asked, staring at the prince as attendants came to help Kuina and Zoro. The prince immediately shook them off, and looked at Chakra, letting the man continue, "What happened… to the Demon that was with you?"

Zoro was about to shout, scream, roar at the top of his lungs, and tell Chakra then and there that Luffy WAS no Demon! He opened his mouth, and remembered what Kuina had relayed to the prince. Luffy had openly claimed he was a Demon, someone the Prince of Treson should avoid at all costs. His heart sunk as he changed what he was going to say, "I… was able to escape from the illusion… I was able to escape from the Demon."

Chakra rubbed his chin, in deep thought, "It appears you have matured a lot on this… adventure." Zoro couldn't smile, but he would have. Chakra didn't know the half of it…

"I… have a lot on my mind. Chakra, could we spar a bit?" Zoro asked, "I've gotten a whole lot better. You should see."

The retainer smiled at Zoro, and the prince's father laughed aloud, the jolly fool, "Of course, Lord Zoro. I will await your coming in the gardens. Don't forget to drink some potions and get yourself top notch!" He said before leaving the throne room. Zoro felt sick. Those potions tasted so terrible!

"Zoro…" The prince looked at his father, the King, and smiled, "You're definitely growing up, right before my very eyes. I can't help but wonder, what made you change so much?"

"Well, you see…" Zoro said, choosing his words carefully. Thinking of Luffy made him smile, and he gave his father a mischievous grin, something he got from his sister, "It's a secret!" His father laughed aloud from the boy's round about way of answering the question, and Zoro turned to the window, watching two birds flutter about, "Luffy…" He muttered, "Someday, we'll travel together, as adventurers.

"As free as the birds… I swear on my honor as the Prince of Treson!"

**THE END...?**

---

OMG is it the end? Maybe... But maybe not!

Keep in touch, and keep hoping, because you never know when the next part'll come up!

And don't forget, REVIEW! heart


	3. Free as Birds

Alright! You guys were all so sad! You thought that I wasn't going to continue! I left it at such a TERRIBLE cliffhanger, didn't I? Well, everyone, rejoice! I'm continuing it! Yay! From now on, the beginning of each chapter (As the other two before hand were the "prologue") will star Chopper. It's kinda Oda-Esque, as it will be "What's going on with the little reindeer while the story goes on?" Well, here's the answer!

Reintroducing:

Sanji: Sanji is a Knight of Light, descended from the savior of the world, hundreds of years ago. Now that the darkness has returned, his relatives and he strap on their weapons and fight the evil in the world! The only way you can tell his relatives apart from normal people is his "Strange" weapon... Just what kind of person uses a... Well... read on and see what it is!

Usopp: A slightly weak newbie adventurer, who met with the more battle worn Sanji, and followed him. The two are partners, and they do practically everything together. Not only does Usopp create strange items to accompany his slingshot, but he also has been known to pull a bow out and fire arrows, as well! He is currently working on a strange item that will make archery even cooler! But he's not revealing what it is... yet... For some reason, girls just seem to think Usopp's the cat's meow, and tend to act just like Sanji when it comes to women! This makes Sanji jealous, and creates funny scenes. It's amazing they're still partners!

WARNINGS include: 

More questions that won't be answered until chapters on from now.  
Long chapter again. Just print it out and read it at school or something, I can wait. 

And without further ado... READ ON!

---

The Bard's Song: One Piece Style

Chapter 1: Free as Birds

Chopper cried as he stumbled through the Dark Forest. He couldn't see the hoof in front of his face. No wonder they called it the "Dark Forest". Oh, how he wished he wasn't humanoid! "Get away, you mangy monster!" The reindeer remembered the citizens of Treson screaming. They didn't recognize the animal that they had let their children play with all those years ago when Bon Clay brought him to town when the former retainer went to market. They kicked him, beat him, and the butcher even tried to gut him. He barely escaped with his life.

"It's not fair…" Chopper whined, crawling along the ground to make sure he didn't fall over again, "God, why did you do this? Why do I have to suffer so?"

"I'm sorry, Chopper," Prince Roronoa Zoro, Prince of Treson, told the humanoid reindeer when he and his sister, Princess Roronoa Kuina, escaped from Bon Clay's tower a few weeks ago. The princess had to lean on her brother, although Zoro seemed to need support himself, "I couldn't… save him…"

"I don't want to be alone!" The animal cried, shouting into the darkness. He felt the hair on the back of his neck rise as he felt a terrible feeling of dread, and began rushing off on his two legs, "Help! Someone, help me!"

He then ran face first into a tree…

---

"_Hey, Luffy_," The Goblin Leader Luffy had saved from Bon Clay's Tower (along with two other Goblins) said as the four ate some venison around a fire, "_You look awfully down. You're usually so happy. What's wrong_?"

Luffy bit into his meat voraciously, but that was only because he always ate meat voraciously. His eyes seemed to have lost that sparkle. He didn't want to talk about what tore at his heart. If he had only been a bit quicker, Zoro would still be alive… The poor wizard had run off, believing himself a Demon, before realizing the only Human ever to believe in him was saved from death by his own sister. "_I don't want to talk about it_," Luffy muttered in Monster Common, eating his meat. His three Goblin friends shrugged and continued eating.

Suddenly, a shadow appeared from behind Luffy, and his fellow Goblins cried out, hugging each other and praying that they wouldn't die. Luffy blinked at their strange behavior, and turned around. Oh boy, a giant troll… "_Oi_," The troll growled, slapping his giant club on the palm of one of his hands, glaring at Luffy in an attempt to intimidate the boy, "_Give me that meat, if you don't want to turn into paste_."

Luffy blinked at the Troll, and suddenly his eyes relit with passion. He drew his hands together, "Fire!"

---

"_So sorry_," The Troll said a few minutes later, after he had finished putting the fire on him out, "_I didn't realize I was attempting to steal from a real wizard_!"

Luffy laughed, his smile returning. It made his Goblin friends smile gratefully that their friend was feeling better, "_Why else would I be hanging out with monsters_?"

"_True, true_," The Troll replied. He suddenly realized something was terribly wrong. The meat that the Goblins had given to him (under Luffy's orders) was gone! "_Who stole my meat_?" He roared.

Luffy blinked at the Troll, his meat resting in his jaws, "_Something wrong_?" Luffy asked. The Troll sweat dropped and shook his head, allowing Luffy to continue eating the food.

Suddenly the Troll blinked, a candle appearing over his head when a thought appeared in his head, "_Oh! I just remembered! I have some juicy gossip_!" The Goblins and Luffy looked at their new friend and leaned in to hear. Just because they were Monsters and Demons didn't mean that they weren't gossip loving spinsters! Although, perhaps they weren't SPINSTERS, per se… "_You see, I had heard about the Shadow Master_," He whispered, leaning in to make sure that if there were any other people listening on the group in the Treson Fields, they wouldn't be able to hear it, "_He's on the move_…"

"_No way_…" Luffy muttered, nearly dropping his meat. Nearly. He stood up, chomping the rest of the meat from the bone and dropping the bone to the ground, "_Where? Where is he going_?"

The Troll pointed towards Treson, "_They say he is intent on storming Treson Castle. I feel almost sorry for the poor place. They have no real means of protecting themselves from such a power. Their guardsmen… aren't that good_…"

The three Goblins looked at Luffy as he stared off at Treson Castle. He couldn't save Zoro, but at least he could save the castle from being overtaken. It's the most he could do to make up for his inability to save their heir, "_Oi, you three head home. I'll meet up with you in a week or two. I've got a date with that bastard_."

Luffy's friends stared as he hung his straw hat down low, to hide the anger in his eyes. No matter what happened from then on out, the wizard would do whatever he could to defeat the Shadow Master, to keep him from hurting any more innocent people. It was… the least he could do… The Goblins nodded at their friend's request, and the Troll stamped out the fire. In a flash, the five monsters disappeared into the grasses of the field; all traces of them being there had been destroyed.

---

"One… two, one… AIIIIIIARG!" Chakra screamed obscenities as he clutched his hand. Prince Roronoa Zoro, using Santouryuu (The weirdest kind of sword style Chakra had seen), had cut his hand, making it unusable until he swallowed a Hi-Potion, "Your Highness! You mustn't fight that hard! You hurt me!"

"You're just mad," Zoro said, smiling through his Wadou Ichimonji, "I finally defeated you!"

"Be that as it may," Chakra said as an attendant gave him a towel. Those words he said were "Chakra Language" for "You hit the nail on the head". He applied pressure to his wound, and continued his lecture, "You could seriously harm someone when sparring with them. You mustn't exert so much force."

"Some trainer!" Zoro muttered, sheathing his last sword, "If I don't fight with all I have, how can I protect Treson from enemies? I need to fight like my life was on the line, or else I can't protect my kingdom!"

"Zoro!" The prince looked up towards the voice and smiled at his sister, who waved at him from the balcony above. She had watched the whole thing from above, mostly because Chakra was afraid that if she was too close, she'd get caught up in the sparring session. Zoro could barely make out the thumbs up she gave her brother, "Good one, Brother!"

Zoro returned the thumbs up, "Thanks a lot, Sis!" Chakra brushed past the prince with a scowl. In just two weeks since his escapade in that tower, the terrible swordsman had become the best in the kingdom. Now Chakra'd have to start hiring mercenaries to train him, and they may hurt him! Zoro looked at Chakra's scowl and looked up at Kuina, smiling. She waved and mouthed that she'd be down there in a moment, turning around and rushing from the balcony.

The prince had nothing to do while he waited for his sister, so he took the towel that the attendant handed him, and wiped the sweat from his forehead. It was great working up a sweat, although the people of Treson didn't like it much (It made one stink, and that was unattractive, you see). When he finished, he handed the towel back to the attendant, who took it in between his thumb and index finger, walking it off to wash it. Zoro turned towards the gates that led out of the castle, and blinked at the two men walking by it. Could it be? Travelers? That was extremely rare around Treson. There just weren't enough things to make it attractive to tourists. He stared after them long after they moved past the gate and out of sight; who could have been?

"Zoro!" The prince was snapped from his daydreaming when he heard his sister call for him. He turned and extended his arm, allowing his big sister to hop into his awaiting embrace. Closing his arm around her, the prince placed his head on top of hers, and they shared a quiet moment together, something that they didn't get very often anymore, now with all the hype about monsters roaming about. The monsters were increasing every day… "Hey, Zoro?" Kuina asked. Her brother looked down at the girl, and she smiled, "Promise me that you'll always be there to protect me, now that you're the strongest in the kingdom! Alright?"

The prince squeezed his sister, making her squeak, "Yeah, Kuina," He replied, closing his eyes and relishing the time they had together, "I promise."

---

"Sanji! Sanji, wait up!" The traveling knight, Sanji, turned around, waiting for his partner, Usopp, to catch up, "Sanji, did you see? That guy was staring at us when we passed Treson Castle!"

Sanji smiled good naturedly at his friend as he continued walking, answering as they continued, "If you think THAT was surprising, you're not much of an adventurer yet, Usopp." It was true. The young boy had barely started his adventure when the more travel worn Sanji had met him. Usopp clung to Sanji's adventuring expertise like a magnet, trying to learn everything he could from the knight. Someday, Usopp told himself, he'd be a great adventurer, as great as his father and brother!

"Oh, come on, Sanji!" Usopp said as the two started approaching Treson Town, "Why do you think someone would be interested in us? We're just adventurers!"

"You don't understand, Usopp," Sanji replied, pulling his pipe from his mouth and blowing a plume of smoke into the air. He replaced the pipe, and continued, "Treson is the city NO ONE goes to. This is because of the simple fact that it's much too hard to get here. There's only one way to get here (at this point, he pointed to the Dark Forest), because of the strange fact that the Treson Plains randomly slope right up to sheer cliffs that end up at the ocean. Some adventurers call this 'The Beginning of the World', because this place is almost like it was made especially for people beginning an adventure."

"Then that's good!" Usopp said happily as they arrived in Treson Town, "I'VE just started my adventure! It's perfect for someone like me!"

Sanji just smiled at his friend, and then looked away to find out where the inn was. Lugging around a giant sword all day, plus a shield, was tiring work, and he needed some time off, "I guess you're right, Usopp, I guess you're…"

"SQUEEEEE! How adorable!" The small town of Treson was alight with the screams of a young woman, and Sanji turned to the side. Usopp had disappeared! The knight whirled around and saw that Usopp couldn't have caught up with Sanji's great strides, mostly because of the fact that there was a young woman attached to his waist. Dammit, how come USOPP always got all the beautiful women?

"Sanji, help!" Usopp cried, pushing on the woman attached to his waist, "Look, lady, you're cute and all, but I'm just not interested!"

"Oh, come now!" The woman said, smiling at him. Usopp wondered if her eyes were going to turn into hearts like Sanji's one eye was prone to when turning on his "Mellorine" mode, "Stop playing hard to get!"

"Sanji, hellllp…" The boy's plea went unheard, mostly because Sanji was now attached to the woman's waist, shouting "Mellorine!" It made for quite a scene in the quiet town… Usopp sighed; maybe following an Ero Adventurer wasn't the best of ideas…

---

It was night, and the world was beginning to go to sleep. Sanji and Usopp were bedding down in the inn's rooms; Tashigi was falling asleep in her bed, dreaming of becoming Queen of Treson through marriage ("Oh, Zoro!" She would giggle at random intervals during her naughty dreams); Kuina was waiting for her three attendants to finish brushing her long locks out before heading to bed, and Zoro was sitting before his vanity, staring at the mirror before him. He was really tired, as he usually was, day and night, but couldn't get to sleep. Something kept eating at his conscious, making him uneasy. Something big was going to happen soon, he could tell. This was the biggest reason he was still dressed, his princely circlet sparkling in the lamplight. He needed to make sure that if anything happened, he was prepared for it…

It was then that he rubbed his sleepy eyes. He could have sworn he saw Luffy in the reflection of the mirror, rather than himself. The wizard smiled as Zoro blinked at the apparition, as if teasing the prince, "Hey, Zoro. It's been a while."

The prince was too tired to ask why he was seeing the wizard, and accepted it with a rare smile, "It has," He agreed, "What are you doing, appearing in my room?"

Luffy's ghostly image laughed good naturedly at his friend, "I'm not really here, silly. I just wanted to tell you that I, I mean, my real self, am coming here right now. He's intent on protecting Treson in your stead."

"Protecting Treson?" Zoro asked, standing up quickly, "In my stead? What's going on?"

"I can't stay any longer. I'll tell him, I mean, me, that you said 'Hi'!" Zoro pounded on the glass as suddenly the apparition disappeared, revealing that Zoro was staring at himself the whole time.

"Dammit! Luffy, come back!" Zoro cried, pounding on the glass, "What did you mean, 'Protect Treson'? Is something going to happen?" He pulled back, his eyes wide. If Treson was to be attacked… the guards could do nothing to protect the place! He had to save everyone! He couldn't let the people of Treson be harmed. He loved them too much.

"Your Highness!" One of the guards cried as Zoro suddenly burst from his room, tying his Katana to his belt, "What is the matter? It's the dead of night!"

"It doesn't matter!" Zoro snapped in response, making the guard cringe at the loud tone, "I can't let Treson be harmed! I won't let anyone hurt my people!" Zoro grabbed to the banister next to him (as his room was on the second floor, looking over the main hall) as the castle shook from an explosion, the same kind that Luffy had set off in the bar when he first saw the wizard. The guard, being rather clumsy like the others, dropped to the floor, his lance dropping from his hands. Zoro growled, "A wizard! A Demon's attacking the castle!" He roared, "Get all personnel to the front gate! We must keep him from entering the castle!"

Zoro's stomach churned when he heard the scream of a young female officer. The main doors burst forth, and five Dire Wolves, blood thirsty and looking for fresh meat, charged in, followed by two rather nasty looking Trolls. Zoro stared at the scene below him, his eyes wide. A dark man, dressed all in black walked in, the female soldier who had screamed a second before was hanging limply on his dark sword of energy. He dropped the woman to the floor, and motioned for his attendants to spread out. They gladly obliged, and Zoro whirled to the petrified officer, "Change of plans. Get Chakra! The two of us will be able to take him," He said, a little egotistically. The guardsman nodded, and grabbed his lance, whirling around and running off, crying out a bit, but silent enough that the Shadow Master didn't seem to notice.

"Just remember," The Shadow Master grumbled, walking into the castle behind the monsters, "Don't kill Princess Kuina. She's mine…"

---

Usopp was abruptly awoken by the earthquake that consisted of an explosion against a castle's walls near the town. He shot up like a bullet from the floor, and looked around, finding Sanji in the bed, sleeping like a baby. He grabbed his slingshot a fell over multiple gadgets he was working on (he worked so far into the night he simply fell asleep on the floor, rather than sleeping in the other bed across the room from Sanji). He finally reached Sanji's side and nudged the knight, "Sanji, Sanji, wake up!"

"Mellorine…" Sanji muttered in his sleep, "Take my hand, Honey… Welcome to my Romantic Dinner…"

"Sanji!" Usopp shouted, pulling out a hammer and slamming it on his partner's head. Sanji gave a shout and sat up, rubbing the goose egg on his head.

"What the hell?" He roared, glaring daggers at the offender, "You have some SERIOUS problems, Usopp!"

"Sanji, Sanji LOOK!" Usopp cried, pointing out the window, which the innkeeper's wife had shown was a wonderful view of Castle Treson. Sanji was still rubbing his head, but he glanced out the window, and his eyes widened, "M… my God…" he murmured at the fire that was coming up from the castle. Usopp spun around as Sanji leapt up from his resting place, grabbing up his armor and applying it over his undershirt, "Usopp, if you intend on doing anything about this," He pointed out as he applied his greaves, "You'd better get dressed. And clean this mess up; seriously, you're like a little kid."

"Kid at HEART!" Usopp retorted, shaking his fist. Sanji muttered a "whatever" as his sidekick started cleaning up his mess and equipping his archery breastplate, although it was only made out of hide. After he finished, he turned to Sanji, who was already out the door, sliding his arm through his shield's arm hole so it would hang on his back, "Sanji, wait up!"

"Hurry it up!" The knight growled, his boots pounding on the stairs as he rushed down the staircase to the first floor, "I don't have time to wait! People are in danger! I heard Treson's Princess is the most beautiful in the world, and the world can't afford losing more beautiful women to heartless monsters!" Usopp nearly fell over as he rushed after his friend. Figured he'd be so fast about saving the world when there was a WOMAN in danger…

---

"Something's wrong!" Kuina cried when Treson Castle was attacked, making two of her three attendants fall over. She shook her head to clear its fogginess, and stood up, reaching for a robe. The attendant who didn't fall over got it before she could take a step towards it. Wrapping the clothing around her and wrapping a nice leather belt around her waist, she tied the belt off and put her hands on her hips, "Alright everyone! We're protecting this room right here! It's best if we stay in one place anyway."

"Lady Kuina," The youngest of the maids cried, as the middle and eldest sobbed in a corner, "We're scared! How can you be so sure that we'll be safe? There are monsters around here!"

"Well…" The princess sighed, "We'll just have to rely on our soldiers to protect us from harm."

The three women wailed loudly, "We're doomed!" The eldest cried.

"Shut up!" Kuina growled, slamming a gloved fist onto the crying maid (because she was applying gloves as she spoke), "You'll draw attention to us!" The maids gulped, wiping their tears from their eyes, "It's okay; we'll be fine. Nothing will happen to you guys, I promise."

---

"Where did they go?" Zoro moaned, climbing the stairs that the Shadow Master, two Dire Wolves, and a Troll were clomping up just a moment before. Now on the third floor, the prince looked around for the enemy, and his eyes widened when he noticed the one doorway that was opened. Those large doors opened to the throne room, which, even at this late a night, could only mean one thing, "Father!" The prince shouted, rushing quickly to the doors. He shoved one of them out of the way, seeing as how it was closing itself all over again, and stared at the scene before him. The king of Treson, his father, was on the floor, bleeding. Whether the wound was fatal or not, the prince couldn't tell. He saw as the guards guarding the king were flung across the room by the troll or mutilated by the wolves. He had to do something. His father could be killed! "Stop right there!" He roared, drawing out the Wadou Ichimonji.

The Shadow Master, standing over Treson's King, turned slightly to the prince, his entire face was hidden under the cloth that protected his head. A smile played on his lips, "Well, if it isn't the young prince of Treson," He drawled, "If you don't mind, may I kill you here, now?"

"Let my father go!" Zoro shouted, placing the Wadou Ichimonji in his mouth. There was nothing he was going to do to back down. This monster would not hurt his father. He'd die before his father did! "Then we can fight, one on one! I've gotten better, and I can't lose to you!"

"Is that so?" The Shadow Master asked, raising his dark, energy sword. He made to turn like he was going to face Zoro in a battle, but turned quickly and the prince screamed as the evil man slammed the sword instead into the king's back, making a sickening squishing sound as the energy pierced through the king's flesh. He breathed his last that moment.

"BASTARD!" Zoro screamed, drawing the Sandai Kitetsu and Yubashiri, tears falling down his face. He rushed forward, swords flying, "You freaking BASTARD!" The Shadow Master's sword disappeared. It was made of magic, after all. He turned to Zoro as the prince rushed the enemy, and smirked. The prince was just about to reach The Shadow Master, but the Troll's club suddenly came down out of nowhere. It slammed directly into Zoro's chest, breaking three of his ribs, and sending him hurtling across the room like a rag doll. The prince was conscious for only a moment afterwards, as his head cracked against the wall of the throne room, knocking him out. His broken body slid down the wall, dropping right next to a statue of his father. The last thing his mind brought up was his father's laughing, jovial face. If only… if only he were quicker, he could have…

"Well, that was fun…" The Shadow Master said, wiping his robes off of dust, "Now then, you may feast on the flesh of our enemies. I shall continue through this castle and find the Lady Kuina. I must hurry on, or we will never finish this in a night span."

"If I have my way, bastard, you won't finish ANYTHING tonight!" The Shadow Master turned to see a young wizard. Why, they hadn't seen for practically a decade! "You're going to die right here and now, Shadow Master!" Monkey D. Luffy, the Demon of Kyrol, shouted, drawing his hands together to cast a spell. The boy hadn't noticed Zoro's limp figure, as he was "hiding" behind the statue. Either way, Luffy didn't care about anything else but his revenge. He would kill The Shadow Master here and now!

"Here? Now?" The Shadow Master asked, feigning surprise, "Oh my… And I was hoping to live for a few more…"

"Enough with the wise cracks!" Luffy shouted, "I'm going to…" The Shadow Master interrupted by snapping his fingers. The two wolves and the Troll stood in front of their master.

"I am much too busy to play with you just yet, Luffy. For now, I will give you a rain check."

"Don't you dare run from me!" Luffy shouted, releasing a dark ball, "Dark!" He shouted, throwing the energy at the Dire Wolves. The two wolves were swallowed by the darkness, and Luffy cried out when he noticed that behind the wolves, The Shadow Master had disappeared! "Damn it!" He shouted angrily. There went his chance to get rid of his nemesis right here!

He suddenly wavered a moment, and rubbed his hurting head. It was frying because of the lack of Magic Points he had. After all that racing to get to Treson without a skip in his step, he was now using too much of his energy to cast his magic. He regained his footing long enough to look up at the Troll, staring him down and smiling evilly. So THAT was the reason the Troll he had met knew of The Shadow Master's plans! This guy must be an acquaintance of his! He then realized that, acquaintance or not, the Troll was ready to attack; and Luffy didn't have the strength to avoid the strike… The wizard grabbed his hat for reinforcement as the club was brought down, right towards Luffy's head…

But it didn't make its mark. Luffy opened one of his eyes, and looked up at his savior. It was then that his eyes widened. It couldn't be. It just COULDN'T be possible! "Z… Zoro…" He murmured. His friend was alive! "ZORO!"

"I… can't hold him much longer…" The price growled under the weight as he held the Troll's club in between his Sandai Kitetsu and Yubashiri, "Don't you have like, some super ultimate mumbo jumbo to kill him?"

"I…" Luffy was gasping for air. He didn't think he had the Magic Points to summon another Dark ball, but Zoro seemed in disrepair too. He had to work hard like his friend! "I think I can!" He drew his hands together, and just as Zoro's strength was about to give way, the wizard released the spell, "Dark!" Zoro felt the darkness encase the room, and he could see absolutely nothing. He felt the coldness of the evil energy attempting to suck the very life from the prince, but he was safe. The room returned to normal, minus the Troll, and the prince dropped to his knees, panting. He… he was both happy that his friend had returned, and sad that his father was killed. Both events stole away any energy he had left. He couldn't take anymore; he just wanted to pass out for a bit, right here, right now. "Zoro!" no such luck. The prince turned to see the wizard, who was beginning to cry, "I thought I had lost you…"

Zoro bit his lip to keep from cursing. The boy was wiping away the tears that were forming in his eyes, and he wanted so much to cry, himself. However, he was a prince, the heir to the throne of Treson. It was his job to let people cry on him, like Luffy was doing. He just wished that he could mourn the death of his father. It was a much better reason to cry than to tearfully and joyously praise God for the life of a friend. Or was it? The prince decided not to dwell on it. He settled down on the floor, looking the boy in the eye and smiled at his friend, "Come on, Luffy. I'm okay. No more tears, alright?" Luffy looked up at the prince, and nodded, wiping the tears from his eyes and rearranging his clay face. Luffy began to laugh a bit, chuckling, and Zoro nodded at the boy's smile, "There we go." He said softly, a smile playing at his face. Luffy's smile, the one he had come to rely on when doing adventurous stuff had returned, and the prince couldn't be happier, "Much better…"

---

"Gunpowder Star!" The second Troll, which was the second one to invade the castle, was hit with a blast of gunpowder, making it fall back, dropping to one knee to keep from the attack. It was then that Sanji leapt up from his spot in front of the sharpshooter, hacking at the enemy. The Troll was left headless as the two continued, Sanji leading the way (as his "Estrogen Radar" was leading them straight for a bunch of women, sitting around in one place, at the time).

"Come on, Usopp! Something's going to happen soon, and we can't be a second late!" Sanji shouted as he tore across the balcony on the second floor of the castle, his pipe clenched in his jaw. He could feel it. A deep, deep darkness was creeping about this castle. He knew, as a descendant of the great savior of the world, that he must do whatever he could to carry on the legacy of his ancestor. The sword at his waist was the sign of his chosen greatness! No darkness would hurt anyone as long as the Knight, Sanji, was on the job! "Wait for me, Princess," He murmured, "I won't let you be hurt!"

---

Kuina heard the door rattle on her side, and she tensed. She watched as the doorknob attempted to turn, but the person on the other side saw that it was locked. The princess smiled at the fact that the man couldn't get through, but the smirk faded as the door exploded in a burst of fire. The maids screamed as the door shattered, and from the smoke came a figure, clad in a dark robe. The princess' scream caught in her throat. It was a WIZARD!

"What are you doing here?" Kuina shouted, trying to look angry, "Didn't your mother tell you never to enter a lady's room when she's dressing? Get out of here, now!"

"My apologies, Princess Roronoa Kuina," The Shadow Master (As he most undoubtedly was) replied, bowing. Kuina couldn't believe this man was being nice! Wasn't he a monster? Maybe it was the young wizard boy whom she had met those weeks ago, back when she was kidnapped by Bon Clay? "I came simply to ask you to return to my Kingdom with me."

"Return with you?" She screeched. How DARE this guy treat her like she was some object to be won? He barged into this castle, and then asks her HAND in marriage? "I'm not returning with you, and I'm never letting you touch me!"

"Then, it seems like I need to take you with me," The Shadow Master said, approaching the princess, who flinched as he raised his hand, grabbing her wrist so hard it hurt, "You are… someone who will be vital to my plan… Your voice, perhaps it could sing… The Bard's Song…"

"Wh…" She stared at The Shadow Master, her eyes wide. Suddenly, she brought her other hand up and slapped him right across his face in a fury, "What are you talking about?" She shouted, making the other maids shiver in the corner, "THAT'S what you wanted me for? To sing a crappy song? Listen, buster, once my brother gets here, he's going to clean your clock! You little piece of…"

Kuina gave a cry as The Shadow Master yanked on her wrist. Weren't wizards supposed to be frail? He seemed so strong! "You think you have a choice in the matter? You are sorely mistaken, young princess. Now, if you would kindly stop STRUGGLING, then you can…"

"Hold it, you monster," Kuina and The Shadow Master turned slightly, staring at the man in the doorway. He was blonde, and his left eye was covered by his bangs. In his teeth was a wooden pipe, which was smoking that very moment. He wore a breastplate and greaves, along with some boots. In his hands were a shield of steel, and a sword that was made from the most curious of materials. Kuina had never seen it before. What WAS it? "You let the Princess go, at this moment!"

"Do mine eyes deceive me?" The Shadow Master asked, releasing the princess (who proceeded to rub it to keep it from bruising, "Is that… a Plexiglas Sword?"

"A what?" Kuina asked, her brow furrowed in question.

"It is a member of The Chosen Ones' arsenal of weapons, weapons only they have been known to master," The Shadow Master explained, "Those of The Chosen Ones are descended from the first savior of the world."

"You mean…" Kuina asked, covering her mouth with her hands, "That legend of Gold Roger, who fought the Devil's Advocate? But, I thought it was just a myth!"

"It was no fairy tale," Sanji continued, bowing slightly to the princess in respect as he continued, "We are the very remnants of the man who saved the world with the legendary Diamond Sword. It is I, Sanji, who will find this sword and smite you, Spawn of Darkness!" He then turned to Kuina, and his only visible eyes suddenly transformed into a heart. Despite the fact that he was holding a dangerous (if you could call Plexiglas "dangerous") weapon, he began to wave his arms about like a pair of snakes, "My Lady Prinnnnnnnncesssssss! I'll save youuuuuuuu! Just wait there, your Prince Charming will not let you be huuuuuuuurt!" Kuina began to sweat. This guy didn't SEEM like a Chosen One destined to save the world…

The Shadow Master held his hand out and clenched it, a dark sword appearing, created through magic, "Well then, let's see how well you are at your swordsmanship, Mister…"

"Sanji," The young man answered, preparing to fight, "The name's Sanji. Remember it."

The Shadow Master shook his head, "I doubt I'll forget it anytime soon. That is, if you live…" He then rushed forward, his sword flying, "DIE!"

Kuina covered her eyes as Sanji's shield came up, and a "KLANG!" rang through the entire floor. Sanji dragged his shield to the side, sliding the sword away, and he raised his Plexiglas Sword, intent on skewering the enemy. His eyes widened as The Shadow Master raised his hand, and a flare appeared in his fist. He sent it straight at the man's face. In an attempt to save his pretty face from burns, he dropped to the floor and swerved, kicking his leg out in an attempt to trip up the monster. He used his feet really well, learning from his grandfather and all (who, although also a master of the Glass Sword, was a great fighter with his feet). The Shadow Master hopped quickly, dodging the leg sweep, but the two were interrupted as Kuina gave a squeal.

The two looked over and saw Sanji's partner pick the princess ceremoniously up as if she were a bride, "Sanji, I'll get her out of here!" Usopp cried, preferring to be AWAY from the fighting. Sanji ground his pipe as Usopp rushed out of the room with the princess flailing in his arms.

"You BASTARD!" Sanji roared after the sharpshooter, "I was supposed to save her! I was supposed to carry her off! I was supposed to…" He was cut off as he ducked under the dark sword. Dammit, this guy was not only a wizard, but also a swordsman! He seemed almost too powerful. He couldn't fight this guy alone! "No," Sanji told himself as he rolled out of the way of the next strike, "I can't think that way. I WILL defeat this monster, and I WILL protect this castle!"

He placed his hands on his shield, and thrust his leg up, right into the man's neck, "Cou SHOOT!" He shouted, slamming his leg into the enemy. He fell over, sprawled on the floor near the princess' bed. Sanji hopped back up, his sword ready to continue the battle. It was funny how he hardly used it at all…

It was then that The Shadow Master rose, growling angrily, "I cannot believe it. You were much harder than her…"

"What are you talking about?" Sanji asked, his guard not wavering.

The Shadow Master smiled, "You don't need to know… just yet, that is," He began to chant an incantation, "And for now, I bid you adieu…" And with that, he disappeared in a flash of dark energy. Sanji, panting, sheathed his Plexiglas Sword and reapplied his shield so it hung from his back.

It was then that all hell broke loose, "MASTER SANJI!" The maids that were hiding squealed. The three of them leapt on him and gave him kisses all over, "You were so brave! You were so wonderful! We love you, Master Sanji!" The Ero Adventurer let the praise continue, and hugged them all in a warm embrace. Oh, the wonderful embrace of a woman was all he needed as thanks! All he did was chase that moron off, just think of what they'd do if he had KILLED The Shadow Master?

"Oi, Sanji, are you done?" Usopp asked, poking his head into the Princess' bedroom. The maids turned to the sharpshooter, and hearts appeared in their eyes.

"SO CUTE!" They squealed, abandoning the flabbergasted Sanji and glomping the scared Usopp. He attempted to escape, but wasn't fast enough, and was slammed into the ground as the women grabbed his legs, "Can I be your girlfriend?"

"No way, he's much better with ME!"

"A better match would be this guy and me!" Usopp tried, in vain, to escape from the women while Princess Kuina stared at the boy and Sanji stomped from the bedroom, looking possessed.

"USOOOOOOOOPP!" Sanji screeched, pointing an accusing finger at his soon-to-be-dead-partner, "How DARE you steal my women from me!"

"Princess Kuina, heeeeeeelp!" Usopp moaned; his hand rose in an attempt to reach out for the princess' assistance.

---

"No… No, no, no, no…" Kuina moaned, grabbing at her face, "No, no, no!" Sanji and Usopp stared on as attendants covered their king's body with a pure white sheet. The princess hid her face in Chakra's chest, "No… Father, why did you have to die? Why?"

"If only I were here…" Chakra murmured, shaking his head back and forth at the carnage, "I would have been able to save His Highness from this fate. If only…"

"Don't be hard on yourself," Sanji said, turning his pipe over and dropping the tobacco ash onto the floor (making the maids, who were still attached to Usopp, gasp). He then proceeded to refill his pipe as he continued, "If you weren't in the other parts of the castle, those Dire Wolves would have torn apart the rest of the castle. It's always better to save multiple normal lives rather than one important one…" The guardsman didn't reply, and for a moment, the only sounds were Kuina's sobbing and Usopp blowing his long nose.

"Master Chakra," Another guardsman approached the royals' retainer, saluting, "I found this letter outside the castle, at the gate. He appears to be written by His Highness, Lord Roronoa Zoro."

"What?" Chakra shouted, grabbing the letter forcibly from the guard, so fast that it nearly tore. He pulled the folds apart tenderly, and scanned the letter over. It read thusly:

To Kuina, my darling sister,

I will be gone for a while, do not cry, I am safe. The Shadow Master has not been destroyed for his actions against Treson. You see, Luffy, the wizard, and I have fought the Dire Wolves and the Troll here. By the time we regained our strength, Luffy could not feel the presence of our nemesis within the castle. Therefore, I have taken it upon myself to find The Shadow Master, with Luffy at my side, and make him pay for everything he has done to you, to me, and to all of Treson. You're a good, strong woman, you can rule Treson fine in my stead. Until I return then, Queen Roronoa Kuina of Treson, I bid thee goodbye.

-Roronoa Zoro, Prince of Treson

P.S. Please point out to Chakra that Luffy ISN'T a Demon, no matter WHAT abilities or powers he may possess? Thanks.

Kuina tried to look at the letter, but Chakra crumpled it into his hand. He looked like he was seething, and the princess looked up at her retainer, a little worried. Suddenly, he tossed the paper behind his back and turned to the princess, smiling, "Princess Kuina! Congratulations! From now on until your brother is wrestled BACK home, you are going to be Queen of Treson!" Silence.

"What?" Kuina cried, staring after the paper as it skidded across the floor, "Qu… QUEEN? I can't be Queen of Treson!" Sure, she was older than Zoro by a couple of years, but the male always inherited the throne before the female! On the bright side, now she didn't have to move away when she married… Suddenly, she snapped back into reality, "Where IS Zoro anyway?" She inquired of the guardsman.

"It doesn't matter," Chakra answered gruffly, "I will head out and find His Highness myself, and then he can become the rightful king and protector of Treson!" He announced, "After, of course, the coronation…"

"Oi, you can't just leave," Sanji said, puffing his pipe. Everyone in the room looked at The Chosen One, and he continued, "From what I hear, you're the only decent guard here. If you leave, it gives The Crap Master an even BETTER chance to nab your princess, and by then, she'll be even more important, as a queen and all."

"What do you suggest we do then?" Kuina asked, shivering all over, "I can't let my brother fight alone! Ohhh, I'm worried about him even now…"

"If I may," Usopp said. He understood where Sanji was heading with this conversation, "We're Adventurers of Order! We'll bring Order back to Treson. If you don't mind, send us to return your lost prince!"

Kuina looked up at Chakra, and the retainer looked like he was torn. They were right; he just couldn't leave her highness… and yet… "Fine," The retainer said, shaking his head, "I want you to find His Highness and bring him back home. I will give you 500 Gold Pieces, as payment for saving Lady Kuina. From there, you must use what you gain upon your journey."

"Oh, no!" Usopp said, waving his hands in front of himself, "You shouldn't! I can't accept money!"

"You moron!" Sanji growled, making Usopp and his maids flinch. Sanji blew a plume into the air and placed his pipe back in his mouth, "You never deny a man's gratitude. It's like saying he's not good enough to say 'thank you'." Usopp blushed. Sanji knew more A LOT more about adventuring than the sharpshooter did… Either that, or Sanji just knew that they'd need money on their journey.

"Alright," The long nosed one said, nodded, "I'm sorry, Sir, we will take the money with thanks."

"Rule number two," Sanji said, directing Usopp's attention to Kuina, "Whenever someone speaks in the name of the Kingdom, then His/Her Highness said it instead." He then attacked poor Kuina's hand with his own, a heart appearing where his eye once was, "My Lady, We thank you for the generous offer, and gladly accept it!" Chakra beat Sanji off of his kingdom's queen.

"Are you SURE that's not just the Ero Adventurer talking?" Usopp asked. The maids giggled, and Sanji shot daggers at his partner as Chakra sent for five hundred Gold Pieces from the royal treasury.

"If anything," Queen Kuina said, extending her arms to keep the two from fighting, as Sanji seemed ready to beat the poor sharpshooter to a bloody pulp, "I invite you two to sleep here for the night, if you do not mind."

"Hurrah!" The maids cried, raising their arms in the air, "We get to see Master Usopp get undre… we mean, a lot more before he leaves!" Sanji cried in a corner as Usopp attempted to get the women off of him.

---

Zoro rubbed the back of his neck as he and Luffy entered their room at the inn, not possessing a tent to sleep outside of town, "Weird," He muttered, "The innkeeper didn't notice I was the prince. Maybe he was just tired?"

"No," Luffy replied, fluffing his pillow up. He threw his traveling cloak off and it soared across the room, past Zoro's head, and landed gracefully on the hook where such items are kept. It must have been enhanced with magic; no cloak could have flown that far normally. The wizard then rolled into his bed, placed his hat on the end table next to him, and stared at the ceiling, his hands behind his head, "You see, once you become an adventurer, no one notices you're special unless it's a Plot Point."

"A what?" Was the question.

Luffy elaborated, "You know, a Plot Point. No one is supposed to know you're a prince unless it'll help continue the story in a speedier fashion."

"WHAT story?"

"That…" Luffy said matter-of-factly, his eyes closed. Suddenly, he opened them, and blinked at the ceiling, "I'm not entirely sure. Perhaps we can ask God when we die."

"Being an adventurer is like learning a different language, almost too much work to be worth it…" Zoro muttered, removing his royal cloak and his over armor. He then climbed into the bed across from Luffy's, and the two spent a moment of silence, staring at the ceiling.

"Hey, Zoro?" Luffy asked, turning to the prince. It was too late, he was already asleep. Luffy smiled a bit, and said, rather softly, "See you tomorrow, then." He then turned towards the wall, wrapping the furs over him, and fell into a deep sleep.

TO BE CONTINUED…

---

Hope you guys enjoyed it! Review, because Christy enjoys them like cinnamon on toast! Mmmm, Toast...


	4. The Dark Forest

Alright! The next chapter is up! Hurrah! Anyway, I really had a big speech planned out to speak to you about, but darn it, I already forgot it. I wanted to say something along the lines of "I really enjoyed writing this. The world and the OP characters all were original characters before this. To me, it makes it more believable as the One Piece characters are slowly molded to become my original creations. It's funny, because I can now imagine my characters being the One Piece characters!"

Or something like that... Anyway, reintroducing characters:

Nami: Amazingly, Nami is not a "Thief" type RPG character. She will be a "Bard", which in most RPGs (I'm looking at you, Final Fantasy), they are useless. Alright, not totally, but enough to fit Nami's bill pretty well. Don't worry, just because she's not stealing everyone else's crap doesn't mean she's not in character or anything... Gahhh, I'm just trying to prove it to myself! Grrr...

Anyway... Some WARNINGS include:  
Nothing in particular. You won't die from reading it, promise.

---

The Bard's Song

Chapter 2: The Dark Forest

Chopper wailed as he wandered aimlessly through The Dark Forest, feeling his heart sink lower and lower into his stomach. He didn't know what to do, where was he supposed to go? What if he continued wandering through this place forever, never finding a way out? "I don't wanna die here!" The reindeer cried.

Suddenly, he felt something touch him on the back, pushing him forward; he gave a yelp, and whirled around, his fur standing on end. A milky lady, dressed as a Kunoichi, smiled at the animal. She was the only thing Chopper could see, it was as if the woman were illuminated with light from within, "Let me help you out of here," She said softly. The reindeer passed out right there…

And awoke at the outskirts of the forest. Chopper shivered all over, and looked up at the sky, "Who… who was that woman…? What just happened to me…?" He shivered as he thought of possible answers to his questions. Oh… how he wished he wasn't alone…

---

"ZORO, wake up!" Prince Roronoa Zoro, Prince of Treson, flipped away from the sunlight and noise, snoring louder in an attempt to get the buzzing voice out of his ear. Monkey D. Luffy, the Demon of Kyrol, puffed his cheeks up as he raised his hand towards his traveling cloak, which was hung up. Due to magic, the cloak floated up from the hook it rested on and it landed in the boy's hand. He wrapped it around him and attempted to wake his new traveling partner up, "Zoro! It's morning! Time to get up! We need to think of a way to continue!"

"With what?" Zoro muttered in his sleep, "We just walk north, right? We'll be fine heading through The Dark Forest…"

"That's what you think," Luffy smiled as Zoro flipped back over to the wizard, blinking sleepy eyes. Luffy's smile widened as he explained, "You see, The Dark Forest has gotten… pretty dark…"

"I know," Zoro grumbled, grabbing his pillow and shoving it over his eyes, "That's why it's called 'The Dark Forest'."

"Yeah, but listen!" Luffy said, sitting on Zoro's bed (as he was getting tired of standing), "You see, there's been some ghost in The Dark Forest. At first it wasn't that bad, but now she's been using her powers to make everything dark. It's so dark you can't even see a hand in front of your face."

"You liar," Zoro muttered through the pillow, his voice now muffled, "It can't be that dark, and how do you know it's the ghost's fault?"

"Fine, don't believe me. I'm heading out to buy supplies. We're going to need at least a tent or else we'll be stuck going to sleep outside, and then monsters tend to attack you."

"Whatever," Zoro replied as he heard the door close behind the wizard. Sometimes, that boy made Zoro want to wring his neck. Such as now, why didn't the boy listen to him? He knew more about The Dark Forest than any old person who wasn't even native to Treson. Although, really, Luffy was the one who went through it to get here. Zoro hadn't even visited the place. In fact, he hadn't been anywhere but the castle… Being out all alone like this scared him, just a bit… but he couldn't let it get the best of him…

Sitting up, the prince tossed the pillow back on the bed, and stood up, twisting his head with his hands until it gave a satisfying crack. He did his morning stretches, to keep him limber. He needed to make sure that he wouldn't pull anything if he fought monsters today. Finishing it up, he approached his armor, on top of the dresser, and started applying it. He smiled as he finally finished. It was the first time he actually dressed himself! For some reason, it was a monumental moment in his mind. Damn attendants. Freedom, the prince decided, was much better.

Finally applying his cloak, he left the room, walked down the stairs, and stared at a man as he looked for his lost potion. He could have sworn he saw that same guy when they walked in, looking for the same thing. Did he spend the whole night looking for it? Shrugging, he left the inn, and looked around Treson Town for the Item Shop, as Luffy would undoubtedly be there. He started across the street, but he suddenly stopped, staring at a strange woman. She was strange, indeed, mostly because she wasn't beautiful. Well, that wasn't very nice. She was pretty, of course, but just didn't seem to have that shallow, superficial beauty as the Tresions had; she was just… normal pretty…

"Ohhh! Zoro, you woke up!" The prince snapped out of it, and turned away from the red haired woman, looking instead to Luffy, who was jogging up to his friend, "I got the tent, and a few potions."

"Where are they?" Zoro asked, looking around on the wizard, he didn't see anything on the boy. Luffy smiled, and reached behind him. From out of nowhere, the boy pulled a large package out; a tent was inside! Zoro scratched his head, "Where… did that come from?"

"I can't believe it!" Luffy chuckled, smiling good naturedly at the prince. He couldn't believe his friend didn't even know about this! "All adventurers have an invisible pocket that everything goes into! See?" And with that, Luffy brought the tent's package back behind him, where it promptly disappeared in a cartoonish way, as if a large person hid behind a skinny tree in an attempt to hide, and succeeding. Zoro could hardly believe what he was seeing. How could that happen?

"I do hope I'm not interrupting anything," A woman's voice drawled. The prince and wizard turned, and they saw that woman Zoro was staring at a moment before. The red haired woman was wearing a medium length skirt, which just seemed wrong on her somehow, and she was wearing a sleeveless shirt. Strapped to the woman's back was a lute. She seemed to be a musician, a minstrel. Her smile made Zoro's blood run cold. Not because of the dread feeling of doom that a monster might give someone, but the dread feeling of doom that one would get from meeting someone who knew a little too much about the world… "I could not help but hear that you're…" She paused, as if she really didn't care about "What she heard", "that you're adventurers…"

Zoro was about to ask her who the hell she was but Luffy leapt in front of him, "She's a bard! Are you going to join our group? You should join! You could be an adventurer with us!"

"What the?" Zoro asked, raising his arm so the boy could run under it, "Why do we need this woman in our group?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Luffy asked, whirling around, stars in his eyes, "She's a BARD, and bards are USELESS adventurers, and EVERY party NEEDS a useless character in it!"

The woman slammed her hand on the clay boy's head, making him drop to the floor, "I am NOT useless! I'm just not as useful as those damned powerhouses that people seem to think are cooler than me!"

Zoro looked down at Luffy, who was already in the process of rearranging his head, and the prince looked at the woman, "First off, who are you, and what do you want with adventurers like us?"

The woman looked up at Luffy; she didn't notice his clay head because of the straw hat, "The name is Nami. I am known as the Great Furenti, but if you EVER say that name to me when I'm not performing, I'll rip your head off." She then placed her hands on her hips, and smiled, "And your friend is right. I'm useless on my own. I need some bodyguards to get me to Jenima Kingdom, where 'The Great Furenti' is scheduled to perform at next. You think you're up to the task?"

"Let's do it!" Luffy said, looking up at Zoro with a smile, "Come on, she needs help. We can search for The Shadow Master while we take her to Jenima. Alright?"

Zoro seemed lost in thought, so much so that he didn't notice Nami flinch at the mention of The Shadow Master. He had heard of the Jenima Kingdom, of course. He knew of it because it had just recently signed a cease fire treaty with Treson, after a millennia of war. He didn't want to go there, of course, but he remembered hearing from Luffy that as an adventurer, he wouldn't be noticed. Finally, with a nod, he looked at Luffy as the wizard stood, "Alright, we can take Nami with us."

"Huzzah!" Luffy shouted, throwing his arms into the air, "Nami, you get to…"

"On one condition," Zoro interrupted, raising his finger. Nami's eyes narrowed as she focused on the finger, "If we're bodyguards, we should be paid for our work, right? Nami, we'll bring you with us if you give us about… 500 Gold Pieces."

"Oh…" Nami murmured, placing her hand under her lips, looking awfully pouty, "But… surely, you NEED me to come with you! Why do I need to pay you when we can work together?"

"What are you talking about?" Zoro said, "You said you needed bodyguards, so…"

"The Dark Forest is so nasty nowadays," It was Nami's turn to interrupt, and she smirked, "You can't get through it without me, as I am the only one who knows how to make a pathway through the forest. So… you need me…"

Zoro was about to speak up, but Luffy interjected, "You're right! We DO need your help! Thank goodness you pointed that out to us!"

Zoro was about to speak up (again), but Nami continued (interrupting the prince again), "And since you NEED me, then it's only obvious that instead of me paying you, it's you paying me. Don't you think so, Mister?" She asked, addressing the obvious leader, Luffy.

Zoro TRIED his hardest to interject, but Luffy's mouth flapped too fast for the prince to choose words carefully, "You're right! How much do we need to give you?"

"Lu…" Zoro tried.

"500 Gold Pieces, if you please!"

"Awww, I only have 125…" Luffy whined. Zoro waved his hands about as Luffy handed the Gold Pieces to Nami, "Is that enough?"

"That's perfect!" The Bard said, grinning as the coins clinked in her hands, "It's a pleasure doing business with you! Shall we head off, then?"

"Luffy, what the hell did you do?" Zoro asked, growling under his voice as Nami pocketed her ill gotten gains, "You just gave all our money to a woman who doesn't even deserve it!"

"But we NEED her!"

"Just as much as she needs us, you moron!" Luffy blinked at Zoro's words, and thought about it. It was then that she shrugged, "Oh well, if she's part of the group, we own her money. It's not like we lost anything."

"What are you TALKING about?" Zoro asked, "It's HER money, not ours! We can't just steal it because we're in the same group!"

"Wanna bet?" Luffy asked. Zoro could swear his head was burning up with a headache as the wizard pulled his money purse out, opening it. Inside was Luffy's one hundred twenty five Gold Pieces, as well as two hundred more, "See? See? We have all of her money, as well!"

"Hey! You two are holding everything up!" Nami called after the wizard and prince, many angry puff clouds from her head, "We need to head on and get to the Dark Forest! If we take too long, we're going to have to rest in the middle of the forest when it turns dark!"

Zoro didn't say anything, as he knew he was going to get interrupted. He was right, because Luffy was already running after the bard, "Wait up, Nami! I'm coming!"

The Prince of Treson rubbed the back of his head. He wondered if this would happen a lot now that he was an adventurer…

"OH MY GOD!" Nami screamed the second the group left Treson. The men looked at her as her eyes widened, and she pointed at them in a comically surprised fashion, "You're really the Prince of Treson and YOU'RE made out of clay and can cast magic like a demon? How did I ever get caught up in a group like this?"

Zoro sweat dropped, and Luffy smiled at his friend, "See? Only if it's a plot point…" The prince was seriously wondering if he should continue adventuring… It was killing his head.

---

"Be careful!" Zoro heard Luffy shout. Diving to the side, he ducked and rolled away from a bee's sting and Nami screeched at the giant bug, her voice loud enough to shatter ZORO'S ear drums, although he was further away from the bard than the enemy. The bug tried flying, but it couldn't take the bard's loud shouting. It fell to the floor, where she promptly beat the crap out of it with her lute, "Take that!" She shouted, "And that! AND that one too!"

"Luffy, are you alright?" Zoro asked as he stood up. The wizard smirked at the last enemy before them: a protoplasm that was green, hence the name "Green Slime". For the while, it didn't seem to be able to do much. It kinda sat there, doing nothing. However, Luffy had said it was a monster, and so the group was prepared to kill it. Or… just make it not move anymore, or something.

"I'm fine," Luffy replied, smiling at the scorched Bug he had recently torched, "You should have known I'd be fine! No one can take the great Luffy out!" He was about to freeze the Green Slime, as well, but it suddenly interrupted the boy. In an act of desperation, the Green Slime began to cast "Firalabaha"! "Duck!" The wizard shouted to his party members. Zoro grabbed Nami, who gave a squeak, and dropped to the ground on top of her, to keep her safe. The Green Slime continued to chant the gigantically powerful fire spell, and Luffy stuffed his Straw Hat in his cloak to keep it from turning to ash, and dropped into the rushes of the field. The Green Slime was about to finish its Firalabaha spell…

…But it didn't have enough MP!

"What the HELL?" Zoro cried, getting up off of Nami (Who was gasping for air because the heavy prince had crushed her lungs), "What the hell kind of monster uses a super ultimate spell when it KNOWS it doesn't have the energy for it?"

"A stupid monster?" Luffy guessed, making Zoro want to beat his head on the nearest tree. Unfortunately, plains were minus lots of those great brown poles growing from the ground. While Zoro looked for the nearest two by four, Luffy cast his Ice spell, freezing the enemy, "Alright! We won!"

Zoro looked up from his two by four search and saw Luffy dancing as Nami put on a snooty air. He raised an eyebrow and Luffy gasped at his friend, "Zoro! What are you doing? You aren't doing a victory dance!"

"I don't need to do a victory dance," Zoro said, sheathing his swords. He then nodded solemnly, as if to show that he acknowledged the enemies' strength. Luffy smiled.

"Wow! Great dance!" He said, throwing his arms into the air, "It's a typical 'I'm a badass' dance!" Zoro dropped to the floor, his leg twitching in the air, and Nami smiled. What a strange group of adventurers she had joined with.

---

"Sanji…" Usopp whined. A vein appeared on the knight's forehead, and he ignored his partner, "Sanji…" The whining continued. Sanji growled a bit, but refused to answer, "Sanjiiiiii!" The sniper whined loudly, making Sanji whirl around and shout, "WHAT?"

"The girls are scaring me…" The partner said, pointing at the three maids who were staring at the men as they packed up. Wait, not the both of them, Usopp in particular.

Sanji grumbled a bit, and approached the maids, his arms extended like he was going to embrace them in a Sanji-sized hug, "My fair damsels! I would love to…"

"Heyyyy!" The youngest cried at the knight in the doorway, "I can't see Master Usopp! Out of the way!" Sanji whirled around, losing all color in his body and turning shades of grey. He dropped into a corner of the room and sucked his thumb. No one loved him…

"Oi oi oi…" Usopp whined at the maids. He waved his hands in front of him as he attempted to ask them to leave him be, "We're just about to leave on our journey. Leave us alone for once, alright?" Sanji muttered something about how he didn't WANT them to leave HIM alone…

"Oh, Master Usopp…" The maids looked at each other, and cried at once as they began to leave the doorway (only because the archer asked it of them), "We will pray at the church everyday that you stay safe and secure in God's loving bosom!" Usopp sweated a bit as he waved goodbye to them in a mannerly fashion. He wondered if it wasn't coincidence that they used the word "bosom…"

"Well, I guess we're ready to go!" Usopp said as he slung his short bow over his head, so it was slung across his back, "Shall we head off, Sanji?"

"Wait! You can't go yet!" A new voice in the doorway shouted. Sanji and Usopp looked up, and the knight leapt up, smoke hearts appearing from his pipe as his one eye turned into a heart.

"Queen Kuina! Darling Damsel, what may I do for you, My Lady?" Sanji cooed. Usopp smiled as the princess allowed him to kiss her gloved hand, but quickly retracted it.

"I have a request for the two of you," The Temporary Queen of Treson said quickly, stepping over the kneeling Sanji and twirling into the room, making Sanji moan "Mellorine" in ecstasy, "I do hope you will take my request into serious account."

"Anything for you, My Lady!" Sanji shouted, standing up and placing his hands on his breast, "I will do anything you would ever ask for, request or order!"

"I said 'serious' account…"

"My friend Sanji is serious," Usopp laughed in all honesty, "What is it you need, Lady Kuina? We will do what we can to assist you." The archer didn't seem to bow after addressing Kuina. It was as if he didn't understand the etiquette required when speaking to royalty. Kuina liked it.

"Usopp, Sanji, good knights, I would ask you to be my temporary retainers, rather than looking for my brother," The queen held her hand up to keep the men from asking questions concerning the request, "You see, instead of sending you out, I prefer to search for my brother myself. Being my retainers will have you two looking for my brother, as well as protecting my well being. What do you two say?"

"But Lady Kuina!" Usopp said, "You are Queen of Treson! You can't just… leave!"

"I cannot, normally…" Kuina agreed, nodding, "However, after all this time I have been selfless, giving my all for my people. Now… I want to ask if you would allow me to make one selfish act. Let me come with you! Please!"

"Mellorine!" Sanji crowed, "Queen Kuina, I would do anything for you!"

"Oi oi, Sanji!" Usopp whispered hoarsely, leaning over to whisper into his partner's ear, "We can't just take her with us! She's too important to just leave the castle! What if she got hurt, huh? Something ruined her pretty face?"

"That's why we're here, dumbass," Sanji answered, puffing his pipe, "We'll protect her and make sure nothing happens to her. Once we drag back Mister-Moron-Prince-Who-Thinks-ANYONE-Can-Be-An-Adventurer back home, then we won't have to worry about her getting hurt, do we?"

"I guess not…" Usopp muttered, "But how are we going to sneak her out of the castle?" Kuina and Usopp blinked at each other, and they looked at Sanji, who had a wide smile on his face. He puffed some smoke out of his pipe, and settled down to tell them his plan…

---

Sanji and Usopp walked out of the castle, Usopp's pack strapped to his back, and Sanji held a bucket in his hand. He nodded at the guards at the gate. They saluted the adventurers and allowed them passage. Usopp looked behind him, as if to wonder if the men had figured out what they had done. Sanji smacked him, and the archer flinched, turning to follow his friend. The two suddenly stopped once they were out of eyesight, and Sanji looked into the bucket, smiling, "Queen Kuina!" He sang, "You can come out!"

Usopp rubbed his long nose as the laws of physics were broken in a stupidly strange fashion. Kuina's gloved hand reached up out of the bucket and took Sanji's. In the next moment, Sanji drew her up out of the bucket as if she were sitting in a chair. Once she stepped out, she fluffed her dress out and smiled, "Wow, that was really roomy, Sanji. Who would have thought it'd have that much room in that little bucket?"

Sanji smirked, his heart soaring at Kuina's praise, "It once belonged to my Grandfather," He reminisced, picking it up and stuffing it into his adventurer's sack of invisibility, "It's a traditional item of my people, used for holding the weapons we Chosen Ones are meant to use. It is much roomier than it looks, mostly because of the fact that it's made from magical metal mined from the depths of the Holy Islands. Really cool, huh?"

"Your grandfather must have been amazing," Kuina said, "He was a blacksmith?"

"Not just a blacksmith," Sanji said, grinning as the conversation brought up wonderful memories of his grandfather, "He was also a cook, and he was excellent with the Glass Sword, and not to mention his flying feet were unmatched!" Sanji sighed a bit, gnawing on the end of his pipe as he continued, "I wished so much to be just like him…"

"…Are you?" Kuina asked, goading Sanji into continuing.

"I couldn't learn from him," Sanji obliged, puffing his pipe, "No, he died before I could learn how to blacksmith. My skill with the Plexiglas sword was ingrained in my head from birth and my cooking and kicking is self taught; it's only a shadow of the greatness my grandfather had." He shook his head, "Sometimes, I miss that old fart…"

"Oh… Sanji…" Kuina murmured, "I'm sorry…"

"Don't be," The Chosen One said, smiling, "A beautiful woman like you shouldn't be worrying, you'll get wrinkles." Usopp and Kuina laughed at the man's quick change of conversation. It was best for him not to dwell on it, and they refused to bring it back up.

---

"Here it is…" Luffy murmured as he, Zoro and Nami (hereby known as "Group A") stood outside the Dark Forest. Zoro could practically SEE the strange aura that the forest was emitting. It was if a dark mist were attacking the three, threatening to grab them in it dark claws and pull them into the forest to devour them at a later time. He gulped, feeling the nerve in his body quickly attempt to flee. He shook his head and stood tall. He wasn't afraid of a silly forest like this! Of course not…

He looked over at Nami, who stared at the forest, eyes wide. It was as if she were attempting to keep herself from running away, as well. Only Luffy seemed unfazed, and he turned to the other two, "Are we ready?"

"Yeah," Zoro said, attempting to hide his slowly showing fear. Instead he looked at Nami, a question on his face, "You lead the way; you said you know how to get through, right?"

Nami shook her head once Zoro spoke. She didn't want to go in there, not again… It made her think of all those bad things, terrible, TERRIBLE, bad things… However, she had to. She wasn't going to wuss out. She wasn't afraid. Smacking her cheeks with her hands, she smirked at Zoro. The smirk made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end, "But of course! Come on, let me show you," She motioned for the two men to follow him as she pulled her lute off her back. The two blinked at her as she strummed the lute and tuned it. The strings were getting taught in the cold mist. Once the three entered the Forest, the only thing that showed they were even near each other was Nami's strumming and the men's shuffling of feet on the leaf infested ground.

It was then that Nami broke into song. Luffy figured that she wasn't really a good singer, because she would screech at the monsters and make them disoriented. However, once she actually started really singing, even Luffy was held under a sort of spell. Her voice melted with the lute and the two sounds mingled and entwined with each other, creating the greatest sensory treat either Luffy or Zoro had heard. The prince thought to himself that five hundred Gold Pieces… no, ten thousand Gold Pieces could not be enough money allowed to listen to this wonderful music. At first he thought Nami was a thief. He then realized she was letting them off easily… However, once the music became normal noise on his ears, the prince had enough brain capacity to wonder…

What was this singing supposed to do to get through the Dark Forest? As if on cue to answer the question in his mind, the flowers of the forest (which couldn't be seen before because of the darkness) suddenly opened, giving off a strange, otherworldly glow, "The flowers react to music, like a bee's humming," Nami words floated through the darkness, her words turning into lyrics as she sang what she said, "They give off their own light afterwards. It's the only way they can attract insects to themselves in such a dark place. Neat, huh?"

"Amazing, Nami!" Luffy shouted in the darkness. Zoro smiled despite the fact that no one could tell he was happy, "Letting you join was TOTALLY worth the 125 Gold Pieces!" Nami's voice laughed in a singsong manner.

"We just have to follow the flowers. They will lead us to the pathway that leads out. Let's go."

"I'll go ahead," Zoro said, walking in front of Nami, accidentally brushing her shoulder as he did so (it was dark, and apologized gruffly when he explained it). Nami laughed again, making Zoro's neck hairs rise up once again. Her laugh was freaky…

---

The sun was beginning to sink in the northern sky (That's where the sun sets on this world, you see) as Sanji, Usopp and Kuina (hereby known as "Group B") approached the Dark Forest. Sanji wanted to know if they should continue on, but was quickly interrupted as Kuina dropped to the rushes, whining about her feet hurting, "Well, we'll camp here for the night then." Usopp whined that they were losing time now, but Sanji ignored him, "Oi, Usopp, start that fire up. I'll start the cooking."

Kuina sat on a rather large rock as the men worked. Sanji was opening up some of the packs, looking for some food, and Usopp was clearing away the brush in an attempt to make sure that the fire didn't catch the entire field on fire. A few minutes passed without much incident, but Kuina suddenly noticed Sanji grab his partner and drag him off where they could talk in private.

"You forgot to pack FOOD, didn't you?" Sanji hissed in Usopp's ear. The sniper stared at Sanji in disbelief.

"I thought YOU were supposed to get it!" He replied in a whisper. The cook slammed his palm into his forehead. Could the two bungle up ANY more?

"Look, I'll figure something out. Just make the fire," Sanji growled, shoving his partner away. Usopp looked rather dejected. Seriously, they both forgot the food, and suddenly it was HIS fault for forgetting to pack food? Oh man, he was afraid to see what Sanji would do… Maybe he'd force them to eat his shoes, like last time! Usopp shuddered a bit as he knelt down to start the fire. As he started rubbing his flint together, he suddenly looked up, and blinked. Why, their tent was already up! Looking to the side, he smiled. Kuina put it up?

"Wow, Princess, you're really handy!" Usopp said, smiling.

"What are you talking about?" Kuina asked, "This is the girls' tent! Not like I'm letting a pervert like Sanji in here with me while I sleep!" Usopp sweated a bit, and the two suddenly laughed together, mostly because she was totally right. When the two let a sighing exhale out from their laugh, Kuina finished up by saying, "Well then, where's Sanji? I thought you guys were making dinner! I go through all that trouble of being useful and you two go off for a boy chat time!" Usopp sweated a bit, thinking of the fact that Kuina only helped herself. That wasn't… very useful…

"Princess Kuina!" Sanji called, holding up some meat patties on a tray, "I have your meat of goodness! Oi, Sniper Fool, go grab some buns. We'll be having Hamburgers!"

"I've never had them made by anyone other than Patty and Carne…" Kuina murmured as Sanji began the cooking. She sat in the field (not on the rock strangely enough) and stared intently as Sanji cooked the burgers, smiling. She wasn't sure why, but something seemed weird about the burgers he was cooking.

As Usopp returned with the buns, the burgers seemed to be cooking through. It was as if the meat held a sort of spell over them, and they watched for what seemed like forever (as a watched pot never boils). Wordlessly, Sanji removed one of the burgers that were most done and placed it upon a bun that Usopp handed him. He gave the hamburger to Kuina with a "Mellorine", and she thanked him, "What about me, Sanji?" Usopp asked.

"Get it yourself. What are you, a baby?" Sanji asked, grabbing the bun that Usopp was holding and helping himself. The archer sighed, and served himself, and the three began to bite into the burgers.

"This is really good!" Usopp and Kuina cried at once. Sanji beamed, thanking the princess for her great compliment. He got them from Usopp all the time, "It's so much better than the cooks at the castle! No way were you self taught!" Sanji blushed and his nostrils flared a bit, thinking perverted thoughts as she continued to praise him.

Suddenly, Usopp picked something out of his teeth from the burger. He stared at it, and blinked at what he was holding, "Wait a minute, these aren't Hamburgers! This isn't beef!" Usopp exclaimed. Sanji glared at the boy, and Usopp leaned in to whisper, "What IS this made out of?" He thrust the rat toe in Sanji's face, just as Kuina dragged out a roasted rat tail from her burger.

Sanji followed the princess as Kuina and Usopp rushed off to throw up in the rushes. He held her long hair up so it wouldn't get in her face as she hacked everything she just ate, and then some, up. She glared at the cook as he continued to bite into his meal, "What? You need to keep every part of the rat inside, otherwise the flavor…" Kuina dropped her head for round two, and Sanji continued to hold up her hair, sniffing a bit as he picked up the smell of strawberry on it. Ahhhh, the ecstasy…

---

"How long have we been walking?" Zoro asked as the glowing flowers lead them through the Dark Forest. His feet were killing him. They had been walking (and fighting) nonstop the whole day and it seemed like they were going to keep walking well into the night. It was rather normal that one would feel tired around this time, "Hopefully we'll get out of this place soon. I couldn't go to sleep on the floor here. It's just…"

"Quiet!" Nami's voice hissed in a hush whisper, making Zoro shut up. She didn't say it angrily, it was more urgent than that. Apparently, she heard someone, or something, approaching, "I didn't think that She'd appear," The bard whispered, making Luffy and Zoro have to strain to hear it, "People have said it was her fault, perhaps we could ask now…"

It was then that Zoro rubbed his eyes. Because Nami's singing had stopped, the flowers closed themselves up, but he could see something walk towards Group A from between two trees, the only thing he COULD see. She was awfully thin and beautiful, dressed in the attire of an assassin. However, her ghostly, milky white eyes were hollow, as if she felt an intense amount of stress. It was enough that Zoro could feel HIS shoulders breaking under the weight of the grief and anguish this ghost felt. She looked up at the group, her sad eyes forming tears as Nami continued.

"She is Laki, a Kunoichi who was once one of The Chosen Ones… She is the one that is causing the darkness in the Dark Forest…" The Bard paused, but Zoro and Luffy didn't know it was because she was licking her lips, "And I can feel the anguish she is feeling. The dark aura is definitely coming from her. Perhaps I could do something. I should do something… To relieve her pain…"

TO BE CONTINUED…

---

I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Remember, reviewing will be fine!

I WILL answer any questions about the original story this is based off of, it's nice to see someone really having a genuine interest in my world.

Makes me feel like my dream as an original novel writer isn't too far off! Hahaha!


	5. Vivi and the Caruebo Ranch

Alright! I hope you enjoy it. Like usual, the fight scenes are meh, but Christy's improving! Yay!

Character introductions:

Nefertari Vivi: Owner of the Caruebo Ranch outside of the Kyrol Desert. The Caruebos are used to avoid enemies, especially the Kyrolian Sandworm. Vivi's favorite Caruebo is "Carue", who she rides around all the time. While she rents out Caruebos all the time, Carue is the only Caruebo she does not rent out.

Carue: A Caruebo. Strangely, the Caruebo is probably as smart as Luffy, and yet HE'S not human.

WARNINGS include:  
Scary fight scenes; beware!

---

The Bard's Song

Chapter 3: Vivi and the Caruebo Ranch

Chopper wandered along the side of the desert that stretched before him. He preferred not to enter it, seeing as how his fur made him prefer colder climates, where he came from. He looked up, and blinked at the small building at the edge of the desert. He blinked, and approached it, his hooves making a cute squeaky sound as he walked along. He blinked at the fact that next to the two story house, there was a rather large fenced area. He gasped at what he saw. They were adorable, giant duck creatures! Clapping his hooves together, he approached the animals and spoke to them, "Hello! What are you doing here? What kind of place is this? Can you tell me?"

The duck creatures turned to Chopper as he stood outside the fence, poking his face so he could see the animals. One, the one that was seemingly most outgoing, approached the reindeer with a "Kweh". He poked his bill at Chopper, replying, "I can't believe you don't know about us! We're Caruebos, and we're perfect for crossing a desert like the Kyrol Desert!" He motioned to the sand that Chopper didn't want to cross.

"Caruebos, huh?" Chopper asked. He seemed to remember, once long long ago, when his owner traveled this desert after picking him up, when they were heading back to Treson. He was riding… "He rode a Caruebo like you guys!" He pointed at the bill of his new friend, and the Caruebo nodded.

"I wouldn't be surprised," The Caruebo replied, "We're pretty much necessary to get to Kyrol from here. Otherwise, you'll get eaten by the giant SandWorm that frequents the sands in the desert. We're the only ones who can feel where he's coming from and avoid him!" The Caruebo looked rather proud, and Chopper got stars in his eyes.

"Wow! You're amazing, Mister Caruebo!" The reindeer cried, "I wish I was important and needed! I'm…" He sighed a bit, grabbing his hat and sniffing, "I'm not important… I'm a monster now…"

"Carue! Halt!" The reindeer jumped from the voice behind him and whirled around, staring at a blue haired woman atop a rather large Caruebo. She was dressed in a rather plain robe, perfect for desert travel, and her Caruebo had a blue hat, along with a saddle and a small barrel of water attached to his collar. Funnily enough, this particular Caruebo was called Carue… The woman looked at Chopper, her eyes filled with wonder, "Just who might you be; little one?" Chopper smiled. The woman wasn't afraid or mean to him!

---

"Oh… What a strange turn of events…" The woman, whose name was Vivi, said as she walked into her home, which doubled as her place of Caruebo Ranching business, "You were transformed into this form by a wizard?"

"Uh huh…" Chopper said, grabbing his hat as the woman walked behind her counter, drawing her hood down and letting her blue hair out, "And now I don't know where to go next… I was thinking of going home to the east, but I don't know if I can climb all those mountains myself…"

"Indeed…" Vivi murmured, placing her hands on the counter and drumming her fingers on it, "The Kyrol/Hikuk Alps are rather hard to traverse from this side… If anything, I'd love to ask you to stay here with me! You can communicate with the Caruebos, and you could be a perfect translator! That's such a wonderful ability!"

She blinked as Chopper suddenly smiled, clapping and posing, "Moron! You can't suck up to me like that! I see RIGHT through it! Moron! I'm really mad at you now! You're going to get it from me! Moron!"

Vivi smiled at her new friend, "You certainly look happy…" She murmured. Suddenly, she snapped her fingers, "I know! If you really need to get to where you need to go, I'll lend you one of my Caruebos! It'll take you through the Loogi Forest, cutting through Jenima and Nigor, and take you straight to Hikuk! That's the town you should head to. You can travel through a mountain pass through the Alps there, and there, you should be able to get to the Eastern Frost lands. Sound okay?"

Chopper smiled, "You'd help me out? Why?"

Vivi smiled, placing her hand on the little reindeer's head, and rubbing the hat, "It's okay… You're my friend now, Chopper. Friends help each other, you see. Perhaps we can see each other again someday. Now, go on, and pick the Caruebo you like most. They know how to come home. My Caruebos are smart."

"Thanks again, Vivi! I'm sure we'll meet again! I'll visit after I find a way, promise!" The owner of the Caruebo ranch smiled, waving a bit as the reindeer left the place. Vivi didn't know why, but she trusted that creature, one hundred percent.

"Kweeeeeeh…" Carue said. If Chopper were there, he'd translate: "You made the right choice, Vivi…"

---

"Why…?" The Shinobi Ghost, Laki, cried as Group A stared her down. They had to stare her down; she was the only thing they could see! "Why did you come? You terrible monsters… Why have you shown your faces again?"

"What is she talking about, Nami?" Zoro asked their newest member. The bard shivered from head to foot.

"Laki… fought with a Plexiglas Katana in an attempt to kill the monsters, with the training of an assassin. One day that changed, when a man and his dog, Ohm and Holy, offered her a job that led her deep into The Dark Forest. However, Ohm did not really wish to give her a job… He and his dog snuck upon her and killed her in cold blood. Her spirit… Has never been the same since…"

"How sad…" Luffy said, although his voice made it sound like he wasn't that sad at all, "But why is everything all dark now because of it?"

"Her soul was once as white as snow, but now, the evil spirits have taken over her soul… And turned it black…" Nami shook her head, and began to strum her lute, "I need to do something to heal her broken heart. She has lost faith in us all…"

"You shouldn't have come…" Laki cried, silvery tears running down her face, "You monsters… You want to…"

"We want to help you!" Nami shouted, "Zoro! ("What?" was the reply) I need you to protect me! The demons in her are powerful; I need you and Luffy to keep them away from me!"

"No wonder they call you useless…" Zoro said good naturedly. Nami simply growled, and the prince walked forward, feeling Nami's shoulder, and positioning himself in front of her, "Oi, Luffy, you'll be okay in the back?"

"Don't worry!" Luffy's voice said happily, "I'll help from the back!" Zoro smiled. At least there was SOMEONE he could count on when they were in a bind… Suddenly, Zoro was stunned for a bit. Nami began singing again, and his brain stopped for a moment to take in the beautiful song. It was then drowned out as the ghost screamed an unearthly scream that made the prince grab for his ears. Laki was screaming, but it wasn't her voice…

"Noooo! You wretched Human!" The demons within the ghost screamed, "Stop it! Stop it!" Nami continued to sing, and Zoro fumbled with his Katana as the ghost's demons forced her to draw her Plexiglas Katana, about Zoro's size. The prince's eye twitched as he felt along the hilt of the Katana he drew, making sure it was the Wadou Ichimonji. Nodding, he placed it into his mouth, and drew the next two, "You Human… You think you can stand up against this woman? She will die!"

"Thief or no, Bard or no," Zoro said through gritting teeth, "You'll hurt our companion over my dead body…"

"So be it…" The demons within Laki's ghost replied, and she prepared to strike. Zoro couldn't see anything but the ghost, and that was fine. That's all he needed. He raised his Sandai Kitetsu and it struck with her Katana. They stared at each other a moment; Zoro saw that the ghost's eyes were looking… happy. It was as if she were saying, "Please, Prince of Treson, save me from this wretched existence. Save me from my hatred…" Zoro smiled, wondering if the ghost could see it on his face. "Just leave it to me," He replied to the woman. He swore to anyone who'd listen to this story that he saw the woman smile the next moment.

Shoving his weight into the Katana, he threw the ghost off of him, and Laki took a step back, gaining her composure. She then rushed back into the battle, and Zoro attempted to block, but the weapon slammed into his Yubashiri, and the young adventurer's katana went twirling into the air. He shut his eyes closed, and gave a sigh of relief as it dropped to the floor, without harming anyone. He then looked up and saw that Laki was not finished, "Say goodnight…" And she brought the sword down upon the prince's chest, cutting right across it. Luffy's eyes widened as he suddenly heard a scream.

"Zoro!" The prince heard his friend scream, but he was interrupted from replying when the ghost grabbed the young man's cloak and dragged him close to her face. Her breath was cold as ice, and her eyes were no longer hollow; they were the eyes of… a demon… "I wonder…" The devilish, not even female, voice murmured, "If you wouldn't mind… me taking your heart as a trophy…"

She gave a cry when the prince sliced through her ghostly arm with his Sandai Kitetsu, the demon slayer. He tried to stand, but he was too weak, and dropped to the ground, moaning, "Dammit… How come it always turns out… like this?"

"Zoro!" Luffy cried when he heard Zoro cry out and drop to the floor. It was so dark Luffy could only see the ghostly apparition of Laki, so he dropped to his knees in an attempt to find the Prince's prone body, "Zoro, are you okay? Zoro?" He groped through the darkness and suddenly felt something warm on his hand, "Hey Zoro, is that you?" He asked.

"Luffy…" Came the muffled voice as it gasped for air, "Get… your hand… off my face…" Luffy chuckled a bit as he removed his hand from Zoro's head.

"Now you die!" Luffy looked up at the ghost as she came down upon the two, and the wizard shut his eyes tight. He had to protect his friend! Laki's katana was about to slice through the clay boy, but Nami's song was too much for the demons within her, and she drew back. With a cry, the ghost lifted her hands to the sky and screamed, "Please! I don't want this anymore! God, bring me home!" and in that moment, there was such a loud wail that Luffy had to grab his ears, as he would undoubtedly lose his ability to hear if he hadn't. He shut his eyes from the screaming, willing away the pain in his ears. He wondered if his eardrums were going to explode…

And then, suddenly… light. Blinking at the normal light, his eyes tried their hardest to adjust, since for the longest while, he was blind. When they finally adjusted to the light, he saw, instead of Laki, a…

"It's a Poltergeist," Luffy said as the purple, ghostly monster stood before the three, who were still rubbing their eyes, "The…" His eyes narrowed in what seemed like anger, but came off as annoyance, "Shadow Master employs them…"

"Hyahhhhhhhha!" The Poltergeist shouted, giggling like a madman, "Isn't it strange that you understand who I am? Only MONSTERS know of me!"

"Shut up!" Luffy shouted angrily as Zoro attempted to sit up. The wound was deep, however, and he dropped back to the floor. There was no way that he could move now. Dammit, Luffy couldn't do this on his own…

"Stop moving, moron," Zoro suddenly heard Nami say. She was fiddling with her bra, and suddenly pulled a Hi-Potion from her cleavage, "The wound won't close if you move."

Zoro's eyes narrowed, "Please tell me that's not where you keep EVERYTHING you own…" He muttered as Luffy shouted "Lightning!"

"…" Nami stuck the potion in Zoro's mouth and the prince bit back the awful taste as it slid down his throat, "Mayyyyyyybe… maybe not. Although why do you care? It's just some Fan Service." Zoro didn't ask what "Fan Service" meant.

"Alright," He said, sitting up, "I'm fine now. I can help Luffy and…" He looked at Nami, who was giving him a half banked stare. Really, he was still getting used to SEEING his party members, "What is it?"

"You can't fight like this," Nami said, "Not now, if you do, that wound won't close well. You'll be… scarred for life."

Luffy then let out a gurgling noise as the Poltergeist shrugged his spell off and lifted the small wizard from the ground, and the others in Group A gasped. Zoro growled as he picked up his Wadou Ichimonji and placed it back in his mouth, "No…" He growled, "Scar or no… I can't leave Luffy to fight him alone."

Nami stared at the prince as he stood up, wincing from the pain. That Hi-Potion wasn't nearly enough to heal the damage he sustained, but he needed to help his friend! The bard shook her head. How could he? How could he be so stupid…? Maybe… however… it wasn't stupidity… Maybe it was…

"Zoro!" Luffy let out a gasp as Zoro stood up, his breathing came out as ragged gasps. He looked horrible, "Zoro, are you okay?"

"I'm…" The prince faltered for a moment, but stayed up, "I'm fine. This won't… stop me…" Luffy struggled in the Poltergeist's grip (although Zoro wondered how a GHOST was corporal enough to touch other Mortals), and he stared at the prince, eyes wide, "I can fight!" Zoro roared, rushing towards the enemy, who grinned wickedly.

"Wheeeeeeeooooops!" The monster shouted, twirling Luffy around and using the wizard as a Mortal Shield, "Lookie! It's a MEAT SHIELD, GET IT?" Zoro didn't get it, "You can't hurt me! Are you going to kill your own FRIEND to get to me?"

"Don't worry, Zoro!" Luffy said, smiling brightly despite his dire predicament, "I'll escape!" A few seconds of Luffy's feet wiggling back and forth passed, and he scrunched his lips up angrily, "Just wait… a sec…" He grunted as he made a few hopping motions, and soon the kicking commenced. Around this time, Nami and Zoro began to sweat and the Poltergeist laughed aloud, "Alright," The wizard said after his dancing ended, his smile not leaving; "NOW you can save me!"

"You moron! You should have asked that at the beginning!" Zoro growled. He raised his swords, thinking about how he was going to get past the enemy's guard. It certainly was a dilemma. They stood at a standstill, and every second that passed was a second that could be better spent saving his friend! What was he supposed to do? He couldn't… concentrate… He didn't know what to do… He shut his eyes tight, and shouted, "LUFFY!"

"What?" Zoro opened his eyes, and stared at the boy, who was standing in front of him, free of the monster's grasp, "You don't have to scream, I'm right here!"

"Wha…" The prince looked up, and saw that the Poltergeist was clutching a large, purple goose egg, given to him by none other than their "useless" bard… "What the HELL?"

"It's a good thing you were distracting the enemy, huh Zoro?" Nami asked, smirking. She hugged her lute close to her, "Also, it's a good thing my lute is so strong! Oh, lute, what would I do without you?"

"No fair! You're ganging up!" The Poltergeist shouted, giving a temper tantrum right there like a three year old. For some reason, this monster reminded the prince of Luffy, in a strange way, "I'm going to curse you all and get it over with!"

"Oh, no you're not!" Zoro shouted, shoving past Luffy, who was still wondering why Zoro was whining so much. It wasn't like the wizard was in any DANGER. He knew that he was going to be okay. He soon heard screaming from the monster; Nami was hiding her face, and the wizard stared into space, a smile plastered on his face. He was probably thinking about meat, "DONE!" Zoro said, smiling at the coleslaw he just made and sheathing his Katana. Group A looked at each other, and nodded a bit. What a battle!

"Boss Battles are always invigorating!" Luffy said, the thought of meat pushed only slightly back in his mind at the thought of another victory by the adventuring group, "We saved the day, protected the soul of a ninja, and brought peace to the Dark Forest once again! I'm so psyched! I want to have more and more adventures like this!"

He suddenly gasped as he noticed Zoro begin to tip dangerously to the side, "Z… Zoro?" Nami covered her mouth with her hands as the prince dropped to the floor; he was completely unconscious from the horrible wound, "ZORO!"

---

"Luffy," Nami hissed as she carried the prince's head tenderly in her hands. Luffy was walking backwards, holding the man's legs in his hands, "You shouldn't move a person who's hurt this much. We should pitch a tent and…"

"No," The wizard replied with absolute certainty. It made Nami stop talking and listen to what he had to say. He actually seemed… like he was thinking… "There's a building over this way. It's out of the way, but it's a Caruebo Ranch. Someone should be able to help him. He needs a bed to lie on, not rocks."

Nami looked up at the rising moon in the night sky, and sighed, "I guess it can't be helped, but his wound is opening!"

Luffy shook his head as the Caruebo Ranch came into view, "You never closed it." He pointed out. Nami gave a cry when she realized he was right! The wizard was too busy dragging him off that she never got a chance to sew the wound up! She growled at the boy's idiocy. This was a life or death situation here, and Luffy was acting as if it were a flesh wound!

"There it is!" Luffy said after turning his head around, pointing with one of his feet. Nami craned her head over her friend, and saw a small building. It had a large pen out, as if it were some sort of ranch. Nami gave a happy cry when she noticed there was someone outside, riding a Caruebo and herding the last few Caruebos into the barn adjacent to her home. The woman must have been running slowly, as it was already well into the night…

Nami brought up one of her hands, the other still cradling the prince's head, "Oiiiiii! Lady! We need some help!"

The woman whirled around, and brought up a lantern that was attached to her Caruebo's neck. She peered into the darkness and gasped at what she saw, "My goodness!" The ranch owner cried, "Carue, hurry!" She ushered Carue to the side of the three, and before the Caruebo even stopped, she hopped from his back, "Hurry, get him onto Carue's back. I'll tend to him at my house."

"Thanks so much!" Luffy said, smiling, "You're really nice, Miss!"

"Just call me Vivi," The woman replied, smiling at the boy as the three helped the unconscious prince on the bird. She took Carue's reins and led him back to the house, where she carefully took the man from her bird's back. Vivi looked at Luffy and Carue as the two stared at her, and she shook her head, "Stay here. I can take care of him."

"Not without me, you aren't," Nami said, pushing herself between the two men and helping Vivi hold the prince up, "Luffy'll just create more of a disaster. I have a few potions as well."

"Fine," Vivi replied, "Carue, make Mister Luffy feel at home. Come on, Miss, up the stairs! We need to hurry; he's losing lots of blood." Luffy watched as the women carried Zoro up the stairs. He wasn't sure why, but he figured that all that blood loss wouldn't hurt the prince too much.

"Kwehhhhh," Carue muttered, a little worried. The Caruebo walked into the house and settled down next to a couch that seemed to be sat on a lot. Luffy walked over and sat down on it, smiling at the bird. He could tell that this was where Vivi scratched her pet, and the young wizard had a crack at it, placing his hand on the Caruebo's head. Carue cooed and let Luffy scratch his head a bit.

"You certainly are… soft…" Luffy muttered, trying to create conversation, as he was getting bored already. He was beginning to get hungry… he liked eating a snack around midnight… and there was a trap door that lead down to the basement behind the counter where Vivi usually did business… and where there was a cold basement… there were perishable things like… "Meat!" Luffy exclaimed, leaping up from the couch.

Carue whined since Luffy had stopped scratching his head. Luffy tiptoed over to the door like a bandit, and stuck his finger over his lips, telling Carue to be quiet. The Caruebo blinked as Luffy opened the door and slid down the stairs, "Jackpot!" The wizard cried, "Oh boy!"

Carue began to sweat as he heard munching sounds. There went his owner's food supply… He gave a cry as Nami rushed down the stairs to the first floor, and he pointed at the trap door as if to say, "I didn't do anything! It was HIM!"

"Luffy!" Nami shouted, making Luffy pop his head up from behind the counter at her, a piece of meat stuck comically in his mouth, "Hurry! Prince Zoro's coming to!"

---

"Hush now, Zoro…" A young voice whispered softly as a young prince cried in her arms, "It's time for you to sleep. You're the prince of a kingdom, you needn't cry. Be a big boy… let your subjects cry to you. That is the burden of a prince. You must be a big boy… a big boy…" She suddenly laughed at the prince as he grabbed a lock of her hair and yanked, "Darling, you have enough curtains to pull on, do not pull Mommie's hair."

"Mommie…" The boy murmured, staring into Queen Treson's eyes, his eyes bright and round, before he became battle hardened and able to fight past impossible odds, "Mommie…"

"Why did you die?" The older prince asked his mother's grave as he stood by his elder sister's side, staring at the round stone. Chakra and Bon Clay stood behind the royals, heads bowed in silent reverence, "Why did you have to die, Mom?" Zoro sucked in a breath, trying in vain to swallow the lump in his throat. He wanted to cry. He wanted to cry so much. He let his breath out and wiped his dry eyes, just in case his sadness was showing. His mother told him, time and time again, not to cry. He would let his subjects cry, and he could help them… "Mom… Come back…"

"Father…" The nineteen year old prince moaned, staring into King Treson's hollow, dead eyes, "Come back… I can't do this without you…"

"Your father…" Luffy murmured, standing behind Zoro as the prince took his father's cold hand. The wizard could have said "I've never seen a KING before!" but kept his mouth shut for the serious moment.

"I couldn't save him. I couldn't…" Zoro bit back his tears, trying not to cry. His mother told him, time and time agai… He suddenly threw himself over his father's lifeless corpse and cried out, "I couldn't save you!"

Luffy bit his lip enough that it stayed that way, and bowed his head in reverent silence. He murmured a small, "My condolences", before turning and walking from the throne room.

"Oi, moron, where do you think you're going?" Luffy stopped and turned, watching Zoro as he closed the king's eyes and stood up, "You think you can stop the Shadow Master by yourself?"

"I can't involve anyone else…" Luffy replied, looking away, mostly to hide his messed up lip, "I… I shouldn't be here anymore… Demons stink up the air, I heard…"

"Don't give me bull, Luffy!" Zoro shouted, making the wizard's eyes widen, "You're not a demon! We've gone through this before! And you can't fight that bastard on your own," He took another step forward, "You need me, Monkey D. Luffy, to help."

"I can't," Luffy said, "It's not…"

"Don't SAY that! LOOK at him!" Zoro roared, his voice cracking as he pointed at his father, refusing to look himself, "THIS is the reason I fight, NOT for you and the world!"

"YOU CAN'T!" Luffy cried, whirling around, his eyes filled with malice, "You're going to get hurt, you'll die. You can't fight him! You aren't strong enough!"

"Then teach me," Zoro said, his voice scratching from the crying. He wiped tears from his eyes, and held his hands out, pleading, "I'll just leave anyway. It's best… if we went together…"

"Together?" Luffy repeated, trying the word out on his tongue like it was part of a foreign language. He then looked up at Zoro, and smiled, "Just as long as you don't get yourself hurt, then that's fine!" He smiled, "We'll work together! As Nakama!"

Zoro blinked, taken aback by the strange word, "N… Nakama?"

Luffy smiled, and spoke in a weird fashion as he rearranged his lip, "It's part of the language of the Monsters. It's a word that unites the Monsters under a common banner to fight against an enemy. It's a way to distinguish friend from family. Now, as adventurers united to destroy the Shadow Master, we're Nakama! Got it?"

Zoro nodded, "Yeah…" He murmured. It was now his turn to test a word on his tongue, "Nakama…" He suddenly flashed a rare smile, "It… fits…" He turned to his father, and bowed his head, "Forgive me, Mother, Father. I cried when I was supposed to be strong. I can't live on the throne in this state… I'm sure Kuina'll do a better job anyway…"

"Zoro…" A ghostly voice said. It sounded like someone were shouting for him, but it was so far away, it was so quiet… He turned around and saw nothing but blackness. His eyes widened as he noticed Luffy. He was walking away, although he seemed to be calling for the prince, "Zoro…!"

"Hey! Luffy! Wait up!" Treson's prince shouted, holding his hand out, rushing after his friend, "Don't leave me behind! Don't leave! We're Nakama! You said yourself! We're Nakama! Luffy, don't go, I can't lose you too!"

"Zoro…!" Luffy's voice shouted as his figure continued walking further and further away, "Hurry up… Zoro…"

"Luffy, WAIT!"

---

Zoro awoke with a start, and he opened his eyes just long enough for his brain to register that Luffy was staring him right in the face. The two knocked foreheads with the force of… something; the wizard gave a cry as he tumbled to the floor, groaning. Now, aside from the pain on his chest, the prince had a throbbing headache. Nami, Vivi, and Carue all gained sweat drops as Zoro dropped back onto the bed, clutching his forehead and writhing a bit before realizing it HURT more when he moved.

"Prince Zoro!" Vivi cried as Nami went to tend to Luffy's forehead before the rancher and her pet noticed that his clay flesh was rearranged, "Are you alright?"

"Been better…" The prince moaned. He opened his eyes, his hands still rubbing his throbbing temple, and he looked at Vivi, "And you are?"

"Nefertari Vivi, a Caruebo Rancher. You're Prince Roronoa Zoro, aren't you? That's what Nami said while we were… Oh, don't move!" The rancher put her finger on his hand, which was still on his forehead as Zoro tried to sit up, "You shouldn't move yet. Your wound will reopen."

"My wound?" Zoro asked. He looked down, and noticed that he was missing his armor. His entire upper body was wrapped, multiple times over, and he groaned as he remembered the attack that had nearly killed him. He stared at the ceiling, and realized, almost immediately, one thing, "Daaaaammit… I've got a scar…" As mentioned before, in Treson, scars were not battle trophies. They were horrible disfiguring monstrosities. If he ever returned to take Treson's throne, he would be the only king ever to have a disfiguring mark on his body… so much for going down into history for something GOOD.

"Can I see it?" Luffy asked the prince. Nami placed her hand on his head, grounding it into the dirt, as she didn't want to ruin his head and cause a stir.

"Moron…" The bard growled.

"This…" Zoro muttered, still staring at the ceiling, "has got to be the worst day of my life."

Vivi smiled, and stood up, "You should rest for the night, here. Tomorrow, you should all be rested up, and I'll see if I can help you guys some more in the morning." The woman stood, and motioned for Carue to follow her down the stairs. Group A looked at each other, and Luffy plopped onto the floor, exhausted but happy.

"This was the most AWESOME day ever!" The wizard said happily. Nami smirked a bit as she leaned against the bedpost, Zoro already falling asleep for the night. The three let out a deep sigh at the same time, and they rested for only a moment…

…until they heard a scream, "Who ate all my meat?" Vivi exclaimed from the first floor. Nami and Zoro glared at Luffy, and he chuckled with a sheepish grin on his face.

TO BE CONTINUED…

---

Wheeeeee... Ending! Reviiiiiiiew! For Christy! Yay!


	6. The Chosen Ones' Pride, and Their Burden

Alright! I really finished this up quickly! Check it out, people, it's got SANJI ANGST! Ohhhhh... I have found myself liking Group B (Sanji, Usopp and Kuina), more than Group A (Luffy, Zoro and Nami). Not sure why... Which one do you like the most? I'd love to hear! )

---

The Bard's Song

Chapter 4: The Chosen Ones' Pride, and Their Burden

Chopper held on tight as the Caruebo he borrowed from Vivi tore across the fields. Already, he was past the Kyrolian desert. Looking to the east, he smiled at the large mountains where his parents made their home. He wanted to live with his people… No more thinking of his master, no more living among the royals of Treson, just normal Chopper.

"Hey, Karoo," Chopper began, looking down at his new friend, "Where are we going now?"

"To Jion," Karoo replied, still running at top speed, "The Loogi Forest is easy to traverse here, because it's like a thin band, and from there we can get to Jion, and from there, the Hikuk Alps Pass is just before your nose!"

Chopper smiled, "That's good," He said as they began to enter the forest. He didn't like the Dark Forest, but this one was much easier to travel through, as it was rather light, "We're almost home, Karoo! I can't wait!"

The Caruebo smiled, "You're almost home, Chopper," He said, sounding a little sad. Chopper blinked at his friend, and realized what he was saying. His ears fell and he looked as sad as his friend as they rushed through the forest, straight for the Hikuk Alps Pass.

---

Daylight came, and Princess Kuina of Treson tossed a bit before her eyes popped open. She smelled something so wonderful… "Sanji!" She said excitedly, sitting up and tossing the covers of her makeshift bed off. It was the first night she had ever slept on the ground, and boy, while it was hard, it was rather invigorating! She slipped some slippers on and fluffed her hair out, her Tresonian blood made her hair fall around her without a tangle. Finishing up, she left the tent and noticed the rest of Group B, "Sanji, what's smelling so…?"

She cut herself off when she noticed that what smelled so good was… rat kabobs… "I'm going back to bed…" She grumbled, turning around.

Usopp laughed, "I told you that's what she'd say!" He crowed happily. Sanji slammed his foot on his partner's cheek.

"Princess Kuina!" The Chosen One cried, standing up and beckoning to the princess, "Come try some! It's wonderful! And I cut the feet off for you!" He was cut off as she rushed off into the rushes to be sick. Sanji sighed and Usopp went to hold the princess' hair up. Sanji poked the dying fire as he pouted; he tried his hardest and it just wasn't enough. If only that moron Usopp hadn't forgotten the meat…

---

"I don't want anything, thanks…" Kuina grumbled as she bit into the stale bread that was left over from before the partners had even been to Treson. Sanji didn't ask again, and dropped the rats into the fire pit so they could be eaten by something that didn't mind rat meat. Usopp piled the rest of the items up, and pretty soon, Group B's camp had practically disappeared.

"Well? Are we ready?" Usopp asked as Kuina handed him a piece of the bread (as Usopp refused to eat any of the rat kabobs as well). The two bit into the bread as Sanji lead the way into the Dark Forest, and just as Sanji touched the first tree, his eyes widened as his mind was bombarded with a strange scene; one that, at the moment, made no sense to the adventurer…

---

"Why are we tromping through a forest like this, anyway?" A female ninja asked a man as they walked through the forest. The man walked alongside a giant dog, and he pushed his sunglasses up with his middle finger. She looked at the man, who had not answered, and placed her hand on the hilt of her Plexiglas Katana, "Well?"

"I have heard that a Poltergeist frequents this place," The man replied in a low tone, as if worried the Poltergeist would jump out at a moment's notice and eat them all, "and knowing your… heritage… I figured you'd be the obvious choice to… exorcise him…"

---

"Sanji! Sanji!" Usopp was doing his best to push the knight upright, armor and all, but he just wasn't that strong, "Sanji, pull yourself together!"

"H… huh?" The Chosen One's eyes opened wide, and he grabbed at the tree before the two went crashing to the ground. Kuina looked rather worried at the sight, as Sanji had suddenly tilted to the side, his eyes hollow and dead. It looked as if he was unconscious. She was so glad he returned to normal, "Wh… what was that?"

"What was what?" The princess asked, "Were you hurt?"

"N… no…" Sanji replied, taking his head tenderly in his hand and shaking his head back and forth, "I… I'm fine. Just woozy. I saw… something strange…"

"What did you see?" Usopp asked as Sanji's partner and the princess hovered over the knight expectantly.

"A… woman… a dog and a man…" Sanji shuddered, "I'm not sure why, but that… scene made me feel uneasy. As if…" The knight was interrupted as the air was suddenly filled with the screechings of little tiny monsters. Group B looked up, and Usopp's eyes widened at the wild eyes of freaky squirrels, who stared intently at the group, chattering wildly and hopping up and down.

"My God…" Kuina murmured, "I've seen one of these sneak into the castle before!" She covered her mouth with her hands, and whispered, "They're Crack Squirrels…"

"WHAT?" The men looked expectantly at the princess, and she elaborated, "You see, the Dark Forest has been ruled by a rather strange Poltergiest. He's been feeding the squirrels something he calls 'Crack'. The squirrels tend to attack humans in an attempt to get their next 'fix'. I think it's safe to assume that these are…"

She was cut off as the tiny monstrosities leapt from the branches of the trees and landed on Kuina's perfect Tresonian hair. She gave a scream and clawed at her head, dropping to the ground. Sanji gave a gasp and went to assist her, but his sword was too big to swing around willy nilly. He could hurt the princess!

"Pachinko Ball!" One of the squirrels was thrown off her head as a small ball bounced off its forehead. The sniper attempted to shoot them all off, but more had arrived, landing on the boy's head as well. He gave a cry and suddenly was nearly kicked in the head by Sanji. It sent many of the squirrels off his head, but he felt the "whoosh!" of his foot and cried out at his partner, "Sanji! You almost hit me! Why don't you kick some of the squirrels off of the princess?"

"Because I don't mind if you flinched and I hit you," Sanji said matter-of-factly. Usopp nearly fainted. Why did he follow this guy, anyway? "Now, if you're not too busy, the princess is in danger…"

"Right!" Usopp shouted, pulling more pachinko out of his wallet. He suddenly blinked, and looked around, "W… wait… Where IS Princess Kuina?"

"Oh," Sanji said, pointing at the forest, "She went running into the Dark Forest, screaming bloody murder." He suddenly blinked, and the partners looked at each other, "DAMMIT!" They screamed together, turning and running after the princess, "Princess Kuina! Your knight is coming to rescue you!"

"Although you depend on ME to remove those monsters from Kuina?" Usopp asked. Sanji slammed his fist on his partner's head as they rushed into the forest, keeping up with the princess only because of her shrieking.

"Let me go! Leave me alone!" Kuina screamed, clawing at her hair in a vain attempt to remove the creatures from her head. Her heels caught on the hem of her dress, and there was a tearing sound as she was sent plummeting to the earth. She gave up and writhed on the ground, moaning. How could adventuring be THIS hard? Was her brother doing this too? "BROTHER!"

"Pachinko Ball!" The last few squirrels that were on the princess' head were shot off, and she continued to cry from joy. They came… to save her. Sanji knelt down at Kuina's side and gave her his hand. She took it, and he helped her up, "You alright, Princess Kuina?" Usopp asked as he replaced his slingshot. He smiled at the princess, and she rushed into the boy's arms.

"Usopp! Thank you!" Kuina cried. Sanji rubbed his temples. Why did he keep Usopp around anyway? "I was so scared! Everything's ruined! My dress is ripped, my heels have snapped, my ankle… ouch, yeah, it's sprained…" She broke down as she continued her list. Apparently she was bruising on her cheek, and she was SURE that chunks of hair was missing from her scalp.

Usopp laughed, "You're fine. You're not missing… TOO much hair and it's not really noticeable." He said, smiling, "You're… really… not used to this adventuring stuff, aren't you?"

"Yeah…" She sniffed, releasing Usopp and wiping her eyes. She then suddenly looked angry, and said, "Hey! I thought you were my bodyguards! Why weren't you protecting me?" Usopp and Sanji fell over as the princess put her hands on her hips, "Good help is so hard to find these days!"

"Of course, Princess Kuina! I'll be sure to take care of you from here on out! Now, all we have to do is find out which way's north and head that way," The knight looked his partner, "What about you, Usopp? You know a way?"

"Yeah," Usopp said, smiling, "You see, there's moss on trees, and they tend to grow on the northern side of the trees. They say it's because of magnetism or whatever. We can find our way out of here by…"

"Is everything alright?" Group B turned when they heard a voice, "I heard… screaming. Has anyone been hurt?" The appearance of a cloaked man made Sanji reel backwards. His brain was showing more scenes…

---

"Lady Laki? Is something the matter?" The man murmured. Laki whirled around, staring at the dog and his master. The man pushed his sunglasses up with his middle finger, "I see… there is some tension…"

"You…" Laki said, drawing her Plexiglas Katana from her sheath, "I can feel. You are a chaotic entity… Something that should not be asking me favors… Who are you, anyway?"

The man suddenly disappeared, and Laki's eyes widened as she felt something cold slide through her stomach. The man shook his head, "God… is in balance… you… fighting for goodness, have tilted the scale past the Balance of Nature… For that… I, Ohm, and the Shadow Master, tell you…

"…to die…"

"You two… betrayed me…" Laki murmured, her eyes filling with tears from both shock and sadness, "Priest Ohm…"

"The Chosen Ones tip the Balance of Nature. By 'His' and God's orders…" Ohm replied, sliding his sword from Laki's body. She dropped, prone and cold, to the ground, "You must be killed. May God have mercy on your soul…"

---

"My God!" Sanji shouted, making Usopp and Kuina look at the knight. He looked up at the Shadow Master, the man who approached them, and pointed at him menacingly, "You did it! You sent that poor woman to her doom!"

The Shadow Master stopped moving, and it was then that the princess noticed just who he was. She was hiding behind Sanji in an instant. The knight shut his eyes, "Why did you have that man kill her? Laki… she was one of those chosen to protect this world!"

"Ohm is a priest of the Naturian Order…" The Shadow Master said, "They believe the world must remain in a balance. All I did was point them towards your 'relatives', and he started committing genocide. Of course, the fact that my enemies are getting slaughtered is a bonus action."

"B… bastard…" Sanji whispered. Kuina looked down, and saw that his fists were shaking uncontrollably, "You…'re killing them all…"

"It's simple. Your people have no power. Spread out across the world, none of you have nearly the blood of the perfect specimen… Gold Roger was the savior of this world. You, his ancestors… are powerless…"

"You're wrong!" Sanji shouted, his eyes welling with tears, "We fight! We fight to keep this world safe! To keep this world from falling into chaos! And I will never, ever, forget those who have died to protect our peace…" He shut his eyes, tears dropping to the floor, "Lady Laki, Grandpa Zeff, NO ONE!" Kuina took a step back (and nearly fell over a root) as Sanji drew out his Plexiglas Sword. He dragged his shield down so it was on his other arm, and he looked to his side, "Stay out of this, Usopp! This isn't your battle!"

"Like hell!" Usopp shouted, shivering all over as he set his bow's string. He drew up an arrow and drew the bowstring back, "We're partners! We're going to fight together! There's no way I'm going to let this guy degrade your pride!"

"Bastard…" Sanji growled, but let the boy stand by his side. He'd be running away around the next round of battle anyway…

_Sanji… _The Knight looked up at the trees as they whispered slightly, _I'm so glad you came, so I could tell you of my plight. Please… if you can, I want you to… avenge me…_

"Laki…" Sanji looked back at the Shadow Master, his eyes filled with malice, with hate, "I swear… I will avenge you…"

"Let's see about that…" The Shadow Master said, "Avenge her? You cannot defeat me…"

"Just watch," Sanji said, his sword at the ready, "I never lose…" He was interrupted as the Shadow Master threw a blast of fire at the Chosen One, and Usopp ducked under some brush in an attempt to escape from it. Sanji figured he'd do that… Forgetting about that, he grabbed his sword with his other hand, holding it as if it were a baseball bat (if there was baseball in this world). He gave a roar and slammed the flat of the sword against the fireball, sending it rocketing back at the enemy. The Shadow Master caught it in his hand, and it fizzled out in his hand.

"I should have known…" He murmured, "Your sword is protected from the elements. Isn't that… interesting…"

"If you think we're going to turn this into a 'knock the energy ball back and forth' battle, you're sorely mistaken!" Sanji shouted. He HATED those stupid battles! It was like playing a stupid sport rather than actually fighting!

"Of course not, here's something worse…" He murmured, drawing his hands together, forming a dark ball in his hands, "Be filled with despair! DIE… Dark!" He threw the ball at Group B, and Sanji held his sword up. Once the ball came into contact with the Plexiglas Sword, the entire place was suddenly filled with darkness, as if Laki's ghost had removed the forest's light.

"Sanji!" Usopp shouted, grabbing at the dirt for reinforcement. He felt nothing… As if there was no ground beneath him. At the moment, the only sense that was serving him was his hearing.

"Right here!" The reply came. They could hear each other, but something cold grappled at their hearts. Sanji felt… saddened… "If… if only… I were stronger…" he murmured, "Grandpa… you'd still be…"

Sanji suddenly heard a whimper, "Usopp?" He asked, straightening up. Usopp sounded like he was crying.

"M… Mom…" Usopp moaned, rubbing his eyes, feeling the coldness freeze his tears as they traveled down his face, "Why did you have to die? Why…?"

"Usopp! Usopp, get a hold of yourself!" Sanji shouted, staring at the darkness, as he couldn't very well turn to face his friend, "This is a trick. If you let yourself give into despair, you'll be dragged into the darkness! Usopp, if you do that, you'll DIE!"

"Sanji… she died…" Usopp cried out loud, wiping the saltine crystals from his face, "She died, right in my room. I told her to wait… that my brother was coming home soon. Mother!"

"USOPP!" The sniper stopped sniveling from the shouting, "You can't let this get to you! You just CAN'T!"

"R… Right…" Sanji sighed gratefully when he heard the boy reply. He was gasping quite loudly, "I need… to handle it… I can't die here…"

"Princess!" Sanji shouted, "Princess Kuina! Can you hear me? Princess Kuina!"

---

Kuina didn't fare as well as the men. She clutched at her arms, feeling nothing but cold. She tried to force the memories of her dying brother out of her mind, but they persisted. She shouted her brother's name out, but nothing came out. She screamed, enough that her voice should have hurt, but she heard nothing. No sight, smell, touch… not even hearing… _Someone… Help me!_ She attempted to stand, but she couldn't tell if he was even standing, or floating, or… anything… _Sanji… Usopp… where are your bodyguards when you… need them? Someone SAVE ME!_

---

Sanji blinked as the light returned. His throat hurt from shouting the princess' name, his hands sweating when he realized one thing… Princess Kuina had been sucked into the darkness…

"Princess Kuina!" Usopp shouted, "Sanji, I can't find her! She's… disappeared…"

He didn't need to hear it from Usopp. He already knew… "Bastard!" Sanji screamed, his knees shaking uncontrollably from the knowledge that he couldn't protect Treson's princess, "You couldn't kill me so you took HER instead! What did she ever do to you? She was completely innocent in this battle! Why? Why did you do it?"

"And this is how you defeat a knight…" The Shadow Master murmured, "A knight who cannot even protect a single woman…"

"Sa… Sanji…" Usopp murmured, staring at the knight as he shook all over.

"You… can't… do that…" Sanji shook his head, "I… I can't protect a SINGLE WOMAN?" He sheathed his sword and rushed forward, making the enemy blink. Sanji tossed his shield aside, as it wasn't needed, and the Shadow Master drew his hands together, intent on countering with magic, "You MONSTER!" Sanji leapt onto his hands, and flipped around, his legs flying towards the Shadow Master, "Risky BLOW!" He pushed himself off of the ground, slamming both of his feet into the boss' face.

The Shadow Master was sent sprawling back, and Sanji landed simply on his feet, grabbing at his pipe, which was stuck in his invisible pockets. With a "Che", he took a match and lit it, lighting the pipe and puffing a bit, "Do you want more, you bastard, or are you going to accept defeat and return Princess Kuina?"

"You…" The Shadow Master held onto his hood, to make sure it didn't fall backwards. He spat, and a small bit of blood dropped from his mouth, "How… can a kick be… that strong…?"

"You didn't answer!"

"You FOOL," The Shadow Master rose, touching his darkened face, and drawing the hand back; his hand covered in his blood, "You cannot pull someone back from the darkened realms… No… She's stuck there forever…"

"You lie…" Sanji puffed his pipe, and removed it from his mouth, his other hand pointing at his chest, "I won't let her stay there! Princess Kuina WILL return! I swear! She WILL come back! She hasn't found her brother yet!" He suddenly blinked, realizing that the Shadow Master was beginning to disappear! He had a teleportation spell! "Dammit! Come back!" He roared, flicking his pipe backwards (Usopp caught it in the air for his partner). He rushed the Shadow Master, but just barely missed him, kicking out at the air, "Dammit! Stop running! Come BACK!" Usopp bit his bottom lip as Sanji sunk to the floor.

"She… needs to come back… That bastard brother of hers hasn't been found." Any Tresonian would have cringed at Sanji's insults against their royal heir, but Usopp only shook his head, worried for the princess' safety, "I… couldn't protect her… Grandpa… can't I do ANYTHING?"

---

Princess Kuina gasped for air, becoming claustrophobic as she attempted to feel anything, her hand, face, arms, ANYTHING. She couldn't breath; she was going to die… "You can't go yet…" There was a voice… A VOICE, that rang through her ears. It was so small, but to the princess, it was like a cannon exploding near her ears! Kuina gasped out a squeak, and she felt something cold on her cheek. She looked up, and saw… the ghostly figure of a young shinobi…

"It's okay, Princess Kuina…" She murmured, "My name is Laki… I'm here to help my relative, a man who has the same blood as I coursing through my veins."

"Wh… La… Laki?" Kuina asked, her eyes filling with tears. Her senses were returning, and she swore from then on that she would never take them for granted again.

"The knight worries so much for you…" Laki murmured as the princess began to rise. The Chosen Woman placed her other than on the princess' other cheek, holding her head so she could look into the shinobi's eyes, "He has asked me, personally, to bring you back. You cannot go yet, Princess Kuina. You haven't found your brother yet…"

"Zoro…" Kuina continued to cry, and she looked at the ghost, and sniffed, wiping her tears from her eyes, "I… I need to do what I can to find my brother. I can't give up here…"

"That's a good girl," Laki said, smiling, "Come now, do you feel the ground beneath your feet?"

"I… I do!" Kuina's eyes filled with tears again. She never knew something so dirty could be so… perfect… "I'm… I'm going back…"

"Be strong now, Kuina. Be strong for your party. They need you…" Laki's voice was growing fainter, and the ghost began to disappear, "And… If you don't mind… tell my relative, to look for my friends, Wiper and his group of rogues. They miss me, I know. Take care of Sanji for me… in my stead." Kuina closed her eyes, and nodded in response. When she opened her eyes, she realized that she was back in the Dark Forest. She was… back…

"San… Sanji!" Usopp shouted at the knight, who was writhing on the ground, "Sanji, the princess is back!" Sanji looked up, his eyes streaked with tears. Kuina smiled sheepishly at the boys, and tried to speak as if nothing happened, "Um… Sorry… for making you two worry…"

"Princess Kuina!" Sanji exclaimed, leaping up. His was looking genuinely relieved that she had returned, "Where did you come from? You're back!"

He held his hands out as Kuina rushed at the men. She swept past the knight and right back into Usopp's arms, "Usopp! It was terrible! I was losing my mind!" Sanji dropped back to the earth and cried a bit. Usopp smiled, and let her cry on his shoulder. The sniper would never ask such a terrible thing on a woman like Kuina. Another reason the Shadow Master needed to be punished for his crimes. Who knows what other innocent people he sent to that horrible Dark Realm…

"Hey now…" The sniper said to the princess as she continued to cry, "We can't stay here forever… We'll never catch up to your brother if we don't continue."

Sanji was picking up his shield as Kuina wiped her eyes, sniffling a bit, "Yeah… I need to be strong…" She looked down at her feet, and pulled one of her shoes off of her feet, "And I need some new shoes…" She muttered, noticing that the high heel had snapped off when she was running through the forest.

"Well, then, Princess Kuina, Alleyoop!" Sanji said, instantly taking the opportunity to lift the woman into his arms, carrying her tenderly as if she were a bride. Kuina gave a cry and slapped the knight across the face in surprise, her shoe still held tightly in her other hand. Usopp laughed aloud as Sanji stood, surprised, with a red palm mark on his cheek. Kuina flinched a bit; she didn't really expect to hit her own bodyguard! "But that's what you get…" She muttered, trying to keep her cool, "For touching me without permission…" She looked at the knight, who was still in shock, and she smiled, "But this time… you do."

"Mellorine…" Sanji murmured, now that he was accepted, he continued, "Until we find a nice place to buy some good shoes befitting you, Princess Kuina, I'll carry you! My love will protect you from any monster that comes!" His eye turned into a heart, and Kuina seriously wished Usopp would have offered his services first… "Hey, Partner. You shoot anything that moves that doesn't include us. Got it?"

Usopp grumbled, "Fine…" He muttered, leading the way. Kuina held her hands close to her, and Sanji followed his partner up, the three leaving the Dark Forest. Kuina and Usopp looked grateful, but Sanji turned for only a moment, and looked into the trees once the trees started thinning out. The princess looked at Sanji, and he shook his head, "Laki…"

"She wanted us to find her friends…" Kuina said, making the knight look at the woman in his arms, "Wiper and his friends… I promised we'd look for them…" Sanji blinked, and smiled. So she was saved by his relative. He really needed to do her request now, as a way of saying "thank you".

"Hey!" Usopp shouted, pointing at a building in the distance, "What's that over there?" Group B looked where Usopp was pointing, and Kuina smiled. She looked at Sanji, who jogged off towards the two story building.

"Hurry, Usopp! Perhaps the people who live there know something about the prince!" Kuina cried happily. Usopp smiled and jogged after the two. He smiled happily; this group… was the best in the world!

---

The owner of the Caruebo Ranch, Vivi, blinked at the strange scene. Princess Kuina was grumbling at the Mellorining Sanji, who was carrying her, and Usopp was trying to ask Vivi if she wanted to know the story of how HE defeated the evil enemy in the Dark Forest that caused it to return to normal. She chuckled a bit, and asked what they were after, "You looking to rent some Caruebos?" She asked.

"Actually," Usopp said as Kuina devilishly tugged on Sanji's mouth, stretching it out (he didn't seem to mind, he was still in Mellorine mode), "We're looking for this girl's brother. Prince Zoro of Treson?"

"Prince… Zoro?" Vivi blinked.

"You know where he is?" Kuina asked, looking at the rancher.

"That is… I know where he WENT…" Vivi muttered, smiling a bit as she began to sweat drop, "He left for Kyrol… I think… around this time, he should be at the desert town right now…"

---

Luffy, wandering alone down the streets of Kyrol, stopped before a rather large house. He placed one of his hands on his hat and looked up at the two story house; it was pretty beat up. He smiled as he thought of all the children who threw rocks at the windows of the place, calling it "haunted". After all, a demon once lived within it with his demonic pet. The wizard sighed, letting all the air leave his chest, before walking up to the house, "Well," he murmured, placing his hand on the doorknob, "I'm home…"

TO BE CONTINUED…

---

Dude, just like you, I like a review. I also like critique, so don't be afraid to lay it on THICK.

And now, I bid you adieu for the moment.


	7. A Teleportation Mishap?

Oh Em Gee. I finished the next chapter. Read it. Now.

And without further ado... READ ON!

---

The Bard's Song

Chapter 5; A Teleportation… Mishap…?

Chopper had fallen asleep. Talking to the Caruebo all night was fun, but as the bird entered Jion with his friend on his back, he noticed the reindeer was too tired to stay awake. All was well, however, so he didn't need to awaken the sleeping animal. Karoo walked through the town, ignoring the stares of the Caruebo's traveling companion, and walked right through Jion's rather large gate towards the Pass that would lead into the alps. The bird was suddenly stopped by a guard, who stared at him, and then at his rider, "Hey!" He shouted, "You need a passport to get through here! What do you think you're…"

He stared at the reindeer as he awoke, rubbing his eyes, "Huh?" Chopper asked, "What about a passport?"

"M… M…" The guard nearly fell over, staring, wide eyed, at the creature, "MONSTER! Alert the authorities! There's a MONSTER in town!"

---

"This… is food?" Zoro muttered, staring at the limp and rather tasteless looking steak. Nami blinked at the prince, and huffed, digging into her plate. Zoro poked at the meat as if it was going to leap out and bite off his head right there, circlet and all, "This can't be it. Nami, is this…"

"YES," Nami hissed, cutting the prince off, "So SORRY a simple inn cannot accommodate a prince. Now eat."

Zoro would have pouted, if he was an immature five-year-old. Or Luffy, "Dammit, I spent good money! At least give me something that's…"

"Dammit, Zoro, it IS edible!" Nami practically screeched.

"Oh, really?" Zoro asked, "I was wondering, mostly because you're a demon anyway, I figured anything YOU eat was inedible."

Nami gave the prince a half banked stare as he cut a piece, popped it in his mouth, and forced himself to swallow, "At least demons eat stuff that is GOOD. Blood, human flesh, much better than your dainty little pastries!"

"I lost my appetite…" Zoro muttered almost immediately.

"Perfect, that'll keep you from whining," Nami replied. She looked up at the prince as he settled back in his chair, falling asleep in an instant. Power naps did that, you see. The bard blinked, and suddenly asked, "Hey, where is Luffy anyway?"

Zoro opened one eye as the bard stared at him, and the prince shrugged, "Apparently, he said he needed some time alone. You know, just needed to wander a bit." Nami blinked, and Zoro noticed that she looked different, strange, "Is… something wrong with him?" He asked, a little concerned.

"Well…" Nami murmured, "I've heard of Luffy, you see. Traveling through here and all that… You didn't know?" Zoro's eyes opened now, listening in, "Around this place, they call him…

"Luffy, the Demon of Kyrol…" She stopped, letting it sink in. It didn't, "What?" The prince asked.

"You moron…" Nami muttered, "This must be his hometown. I'm just kinda worried… You think he's okay out there? After all, these people think of him as a demon."

"Don't worry," Zoro replied, going back to sleep. Nami looked quizzically at her party member, and he yawned, "He's a wizard… no one in this town can hurt him…" Nami huffed at the prince. He was acting like he knew EVERYTHING. It wasn't like Luffy was a great sage or anything… She humphed and sat back in her chair. So much for being WORRIED…

---

Luffy closed the door to his home silently, but apparently it was loud enough to attract the attention of an animal whose hearing was rather fine tuned. The wizard blinked as a rather giant St. Bernard rounded the corner and Luffy cried as the beast leapt on top of the clay boy.

"Alexander! Alexander!" Luffy cried, laughing as Alexander licked his cheek so much the flesh was covering up his eye, "Get off! Get off, Alexander! I missed you too!"

He finally was able to push his dog off of him, and started dragging his flesh down so that it looked normal. He then proceeded to dig the scar back on his face, smiling at his dog, "Jeez, I figured you'd like, eat me or something. So much for the evil demon's pet everyone kept talking about when I was living here." Alexander barked, and Luffy laughed, "Yeah yeah, I know. I did leave you all alone. Hey, speaking of which…

"Why haven't you left this place to find some food? I haven't been here to feed you…"

It was then that Luffy nearly jumped from his seated position on the floor. There was someone knocking on the door, and the clay boy blinked when he heard who was on the other side… "Alexander! I came to give you some food! I'm coming in now!" Luffy scrambled up, and the doorknob turned. A little girl opened the door, and she looked up at the wizard, her eyes wide. She dropped the bowl of dog food as she stared at the wizard, and for a moment, they simply stared at each other…

"R… Rika!" Luffy cried, a grin pasting itself on his face, "How long has it been?"

"Luffy!" Rika grabbed onto the wizard, her eyes wide and filled with multiple stars, "It's been a long while! I was so sad when you went away! How else can we have fun cook outs together?"

"Rika…" Luffy said as the girl hugged his cape and snuggled her nose in it, "Your mom told you not to come here. She told you it was dangerous, didn't she?"

Rika looked up at the wizard, her eyes wide, "Y… yeah… but Alexander needed food…" She sniffed, "And… you're not mean. You're my friend."

Luffy smiled, "Just don't get caught then!" He said. Rika sniffed and rubbed her nose, nodding, "Now, go on and feed Alexander. I'll go continue my research."

"Can I be your guinea pig?" Rika asked as the two walked deeper into the house together.

"No way!" Luffy replied, smiling, "It's way too dangerous for THIS experiment. I need someone stronger, and less young."

Rika giggled, "Alright then!" She said, understanding completely that an experiment with a dazzling light show was no where near as dangerous as an experiment which included thousands of volts. She just wondered if Luffy was really going to use a guinea pig for this particular one. It must not be life threatening if it messed up, as he wouldn't use a living human in the experiment if he could die! Rika liked Luffy, because he was nice like that, and trusted his judgment completely. After feeding Alexander by placing the St. Bernard's food dish on the floor next to his "bed", and slipped through two rooms, down one hallway, and into Luffy's favorite room, where multiple magical gadgets, from a broken wand with a bit of a Phoenix's Down imbedded within it to swirling gyros that floated in air to the head of a raven. Rika didn't like that but Luffy said it was used to bring good luck to wizards, even though most were bad. It was no surprise that Luffy was already in there, rubbing his clay head until it left an indentation in his right cheek, thinking of what formulas to write… "Hey… Luffy?"

"Oh, Rika," The wizard looked up at the girl, and smiled. Rika didn't smile back, but sat down near her friend, and poked Luffy's arm. The wizard winced from the pain as his flesh was molded into a small hole, where Rika's finger was. The girl looked at her friend, and he looked away, "It's nothing…"

"It's not nothing!" Rika cried, standing up, "You're still cursed! First, you bruised too easily; then, you started stretching like you were made out of rubber or something! Now… now…" She looked at the hole in his flesh, "Now it's like play dough…"

"It's nothing," Luffy said, reforming his arm and turning to the girl, smiling, "Just a little longer. If I train hard enough, I'll be able to beat that Shadow Master and break the curse he put on me!"

"But…" Luffy was taken aback when he saw the girl's eyes fill with tears, "What if you don't do it in time? What'll happen to your body THEN?" The wizard stared at the girl as she hid her face in her tiny hands and began to bawl, "I don't want you to turn into a yucky oozy puddle, Luffy! You'd die! Luffy, I'd be so sad if you died!" She didn't continue, but simply cried.

"Rika…" Luffy murmured, holding out his other hand, the one that didn't have the hole in it. He sighed, dropping his hand on his hat and hiding his eyes, "Yeah…" He murmured, "Yeah, it could happen. If it continues like this… there won't be much left of me." He then looked at Rika, and smiled, making her stop bawling, "But its okay. I've got some Nakama!"

"Na… Nakama?"

"Some party members," Luffy explained, his grin widening, "A prince and a bard! We'll get more party members and stop the Shadow Master and break the curse! So you can stop crying. I'll be better soon."

Rika looked at Luffy, and nodded, "R… Right!" She smiled as she started turning around, "I gotta start heading home. Mom'll get mad at me if I'm not home by dinner time! She might realize where I've been!"

Luffy smiled broadly at Rika as she trotted from the room, and he waved after her, "Bye, Rika! I'll see you again!"

---

Sanji leapt from his Caruebo even before it stopped, "Princess KUINAAAA!" He crowed, smiling at the princess, who was wearing a less royal outfit, complete with some of Vivi's brand new Caruebo hide boots (a gift from the rancher), "I'll buy some supplies and secure a wonderful inn for you to stay in! You'd better take good care of her, Usopp!"

Usopp sighed as he got off, and Kuina slid off her ride (as she was riding sidesaddle), "Yeah, I'll take care of her, Sanji. Kuina, where do you want to go?"

Sanji turned and walked off towards the market, and Kuina smiled at her party member, "Let's ask around, if we can find someone who knows where Zoro is, that'll make our journey that much faster!"

"Oh yeah…" Usopp looked away, to hide the sadness that tugged at his features. It was true, Kuina would go back home with her brother once she found him. It wasn't that he didn't want the prince to be found, it was just that the princess had already become part of the group. She was their party member, no matter what, and now the sniper didn't want her to go…

"Excuse me!" Usopp looked up from his thoughts when he heard a woman approach the two, "Are you… are you adventurers?"

Kuina was about to respond, but Usopp interrupted, "Of course, my lady! I am the powerful knight Usopp, an adventurer who destroys demons and slays dragons! If you aren't sure, perhaps I could tell you a tale of when…"

"Please, adventurers, you must help me! Kyrol is in danger!" The woman cried, flinging herself into Usopp, making the sniper gag. She must have been at least a decade older than her, and she was STILL attracted to him? The woman looked up at the adventurer, her eyes wide, "The Demon… the Demon of Kyrol has returned!"

---

"Are you sure we should be doing this, Kuina?" Usopp asked, hiding behind the princess, despite the fact that he was supposed to be protecting her, "Are you sure we should be looking for a demon?"

"She said that the Demon of Kyrol was a monster and could kill the innocent youngsters of the town," Kuina replied, as if that was answer enough, "You don't want him to hurt any innocent people, do you, Usopp?"

"N… Of course not!" Usopp replied, poking his head out as the two approached the two story, beat down house, "It's just that, shouldn't we leave this to Sanji?"

"He's busy, silly!" Kuina replied, "We'll be fine. Don't worry!" Usopp nodded, but his knees knocked together from their ferocious rattling. The princess approached the house, and knocked, "Hello? Heeeeeellooooo! Open up, please, we want to know something!"

Silence was her only response, and the long nosed boy said, "Well, I guess since there's no one here, we can just…" Usopp gave a cry when the door opened a crack, and Kuina smiled as she heard, "Alexander, back! It's okay!"

The Princess of Treson winced from seeing a scar under the eye that poked out from the crack in the door. Ohhhh, how gross the disfigurement was! "H… hello?" Kuina asked after biting back her repulsion, "Are you… okay out here?"

The boy with the straw hat smiled widely, "It's okay, I'm used to living alone," The boy opened the door a little more, "But… why are you asking, Miss?" He cocked his head to the side, looking as if he were inspecting her. Perhaps the boy saw her somewhere before?

"I just… heard there was a demon around here. A monster that was hurting people…" Kuina replied, "We were looking for a monster."

"A monster…?" Luffy stared at the woman, his mind racing. Already, he was being targeted. He thought… it wouldn't be this fast, how did the town know he was here already? He was about to speak, but he stopped, thinking instead. Zoro… Zoro told him he wasn't a demon! He wasn't a monster! "Nope, no monster around here!" He replied, grinning widely and giving a cute "Hee hee hee!" chuckle.

Usopp blinked at the boy, and Kuina looked at the sniper. He shrugged, "I guess… perhaps she was mistaken?"

"I guess…" Kuina said. She looked at the boy, who smiled back, and she tried to retain a smile, although that disfigurement under his eye made her stomach churn, "I must be wrong. There's no way someone as… innocent as you could be a demon."

"My name's Monkey D. Luffy!" Luffy threw the door open and held his hand out, "Nice to meet you!"

"Hello, Mister Luffy," Kuina took the hand and shook the offered hand, and she introduced herself, "My name… is Kuina, and this is Usopp. He's my bodyguard."

Luffy stared at Kuina, and then turned to Usopp. His eyes widened, and they filled with stars, "Hey! Usopp, I need some help with an experiment! If you don't mind, would you like to be my guinea pig?" The sniper blinked, taking a step or two back.

"Wh… what are you…"

"Do it, Usopp!" Kuina exclaimed, looking at Usopp, an innocent smile on her face, "It can't be too dangerous! I bet it'll be fun!"

The adventurer looked at the woman, who looked so happy! He sighed, and looked at Luffy, rubbing his bandana, "Fine, fine, I'll take part in your experiment."

"Alright!" The wizard cried, "Come on in, you two. I don't have much food or accommodations, but I'm sure it'll be okay." He turned around and the adventurers followed the boy into the home. He showed the place off a bit, although it was terribly dusty and looked like it hadn't been taken care of in weeks. Was the boy on vacation for a while? Kuina wasn't sure what to think now. Was the woman right, or was the boy? She was interrupted from her thoughts as Luffy opened a door and said, "Here we are. My experimental room!"

"…" Usopp was at a loss for words. There were so many magical gadgets, most likely excavated from the Holy Civilization from the Holy Isle. It was amazing, and he looked at Luffy, "How did you get all this stuff?" He asked.

"I travel," Luffy replied, "One of my favorite things to do is find some nice gadgets and see what I can do with them. I found this recently!" He pulled a rather strange bottle with a white orb in it. The orb radiated light as if it were a sun in miniature, "You see? I'm going to tap into this will o' wisp's magical powers, and see if it can make my own magic better!"

Usopp gave a cry and pointed an accusing finger at the oblivious wizard, "I was RIGHT!" He shouted, "You DO have magical abilities. You're the…"

Kuina stopped him short by clasping her hand over his mouth, "Hey! Usopp, you can't say that. Just because he knows magic…" She looked at Luffy, and smiled, "…doesn't mean he's a demon…"

Usopp stared at Kuina as her hand clasped on his mouth. She glared at her bodyguard, and he nodded. After she released his mouth, he looked at Luffy, who stared at the two, a black stare on his face, "I…" The sniper looked away, "I'm sorry for being so forward about it… but I don't know… what are you planning on doing?"

Luffy smiled, "I'm trying to use a teleportation spell!" He said. Usopp blinked. That Shadow Master was using a teleportation spell… If Luffy learned to teleport people… then it would be a cinch to…

"I… I'll do it!" Usopp said, his legs beginning to knock together. He looked frightened, but he had to be brave. If they found a way to catch the Shadow Master in his tracks by following him, then it was a small price to pay to defeat the man who was causing his partner so much grief. He looked at the boy, and asked, "What do I need to do?"

"Just stand there," Luffy said, popping the cork on the bottle. The will o' wisp made for a quick get away, but the wizard plucked the light creature from the sky and held his hands together, beginning his spell, "Here we go… I need complete concentration, if you don't mind," Kuina and Usopp hadn't known the wizard long enough to know that Luffy wasn't capable of "complete concentration", so instead they nodded, completely silent. The will o' wisp was shocked, and floated in the air as the medium between Luffy's two hands, which were spread out just a bit, cupped so his fingers barely touched. After only a moment of chanting, he released the ball, "Teleport!" He shouted. The wisp flew straight for Usopp, and he gave a cry, cowering before it as it connected with his arm and surrounded the sniper with a light so bright even Kuina had to protect her eyes with her arm.

The light died down, and Kuina blinked, looking around, "Usopp… Wh… where did he go?"

Luffy took a deep breath, and opened his eyes, "Alright!" He said, after noticing that the sniper was nowhere to be seen, "It worked!"

Kuina cried out, taking Luffy's wrist, "Hey! Luffy! Where did Usopp go? Where did you send him?"

Luffy blinked at the princess, and pointed behind him, "He's right over… huh?" The two looked at the empty room, and Luffy's face screwed up in a questioning pout, "Hey, where is he?"

The princess gave a cry, "That's what I'm asking YOU! Where did you send him?"

"Oh!" Luffy turned back to Kuina, and smiled, "I tried to send him right over there, but it seems I messed up. Heh, even I don't know where he is!" Kuina cracked into hundreds of pieces, and dropped to the floor with a tinkle sound. Luffy blinked at the princess, "Hey, Kuina… are you okay?"

Treson's Princess, after rearranging herself, grabbed her forehead and plopped to the floor, sighing, "This can't… this can't be happening to me…" She looked up at the wizard, "Luffy, can't you…" She suddenly stopped her question as pain seared through her head, "Ahhhhhh!" She clutched her head and doubled over, touching her now hurting head to the floor.

"Kuina!" Luffy shouted, "Kuina, can you hear me, what's wrong?"

"U… Usopp…" Kuina looked up at the boy who was addressing her, her face screwed in pain. Her eyes, however, were wide with fear, "He's in danger!"

---

"Hey, this isn't so bad…" Usopp muttered, looking at the clouds as they passed by him. He smiled as he looked around. Everything was so soothing. Sky, sky, everywhere he looked. He shivered a bit as a cloud brushed through him, but even that made him laugh aloud, "This is cool!" North, South, East, West, and Up. Everything was all so beautiful, "Who would have thought the sky was so… wait…" His eyes widened, "What's DOWN?" Looking down (the moron), his eyes popped out of his head as he noticed he was hundreds of feet in the air, right above a rather small hamlet, "Noooo!" He screamed, trying to climb up an invisible ladder as he began to plummet. Noticing that wasn't going to work, he began to swim through the air. Nothing was working! "Someone! Heeeeeeeeeeelp!" He screamed, hurtling straight towards the ground. He was going to die, he was going to die, he was going to…

WHUMP! Everything went dark the moment he landed, the last thing he remembered was the sickening crunch of broken bones…

"Huh?" A young woman looked up from her tending of her gardens. She looked up as something screamed, falling to the floor. She gasped, was it a Roc?

"Lady Kaya!" A butler cried, rushing out of the hamlet's large mansion when the girl screamed as the creature hit the ground, "Are you alright?"

"Meri, Meri, get my medicinal supplies!" Kaya cried, her eyes filling with tears, "I think a Roc has gotten himself hurt, or maybe killed!"

---

"Kuina! Kuina, are you okay?" Luffy cried. His new friend was hurting! How did that happen?

"Y… yeah…" The princess murmured, rubbing her head, "The pain is subsiding. Usopp… isn't in danger anymore…"

"In danger?" Luffy asked, "You can tell…"

"It's a sixth sense…" Kuina murmured, wiping the sweat from her forehead. Sweat was ugly and disfiguring, after all, "I've been born with it, like my mother. It's a gift from God that tells me when the members of my party are in danger of being hurt."

"Your Nakama…" Luffy whispered, making the princess look up at the boy. He shook his head, "I'm going to make things right!" He placed his hands on his hips. Fighting the Shadow Master with Zoro came second to this! "I'll help find Usopp, and we'll go get him together!"

"Really?" Kuina asked, standing. She was about to doubt trusting Luffy, but he was truly sorry, and ready to make amends. She had to trust him, "Thanks so much, Luffy!" She clapped her hands together as Luffy drew out a spherical object from a drawer. The boy seemed to like spheres… He turned towards the princess and beckoned her closer. She walked forward and saw that a picture perfect hamlet had appeared in the ball, "What's that?"

"Where Usopp is," Luffy said, "This ball listened to my desire to find him and told me where he is. It's the town of Nigor, to the west of Kyrol, across the Grand River," He looked at Kuina, and placed the ball back in the drawer, "Now, let's go find your Nakama!"

"Alright!" Kuina said, following the wizard out of the house. She placed her hands behind her back as the two walked through the town and out of the the village entirely. She suddenly gasped, "Oh my goodness! I just remembered!" Luffy turned around, and she rubbed the back of her head, "We were looking for my brother!"

"Your brother?" Luffy asked as the two continued to walk, "Has he been traveling as well?"

"Yeah," Kuina replied, looking out at the sands of the desert as Luffy continued to walk, "I've been looking for him, because I'm worried about him. He's my only brother, you know, and the last of my family."

Luffy suddenly stuck out his tongue and held his thumb up as if inspecting the princess for a picture, "Yeah… you look a lot like her…"

"'Her'?" Kuina asked. Luffy smiled.

"Yeah, there was a kind priestess a long while ago. She used to travel from town to town and purge the lands of evil. She was gifted by God with powers that could exorcise ghosts and expel demons and stuff like that. She was impartial to who she helped," Luffy looked away, "She helped Goblins as well as Humans."

"Wow," Kuina murmured, "And you say she looks like me?"

"Yeah, she came to my hometown a long while ago, before I was born. I've only seen a drawing of her by my people, but she looked a lot like you," Luffy stared at Kuina, and the princess looked away, blushing a bit. She didn't understand why she was embarrassed about those words, but that made her feel a little silly… The two walked on in silence for the next few hours…

---

…and because THAT'S boring, we'll go back to Zoro and Nami! But that was boring too, as Nami was grumbling under her breath as she sat at the table the party members were sharing. Zoro was sleeping, and snoring enough to attract a few onlookers. What Nami wouldn't do to find some GOOD bodyguards…

"Zoro," The bard muttered, "I think you should go find Luffy now. It's been a while, and we need to start talking about going to Nigor."

"Huh?" The prince opened one eye lazily, "What about Nigor?"

"It's the village between here (Kyrol) and where I'm going (Jenima), if you've forgotten, you moron!" Nami hissed. Zoro dropped his feet to the floor (as they were up on the small table before), and stopped. Nami blinked, "Well?"

"I'm thinking…" Zoro replied, his eyes still closed. Nami gave a "chuh" and placed her hand on her cheek, leaning against it on the table. She looked at the prince as he finally stood up, stretching a bit, "Alright, I'll go pick up the little guy, and bring him back. Just wait here. The last thing I need is to lose you too."

"Yeah, whatever," Nami muttered. She looked at the prince and gave him a sly smile, "You aren't… worried about me, are you?"

"SHUT UP!" Zoro roared; smoke practically flying from his head. He turned and stomped towards the door of the inn. He opened the door and passed by another adventurer who wandered into the hotel, holding multiple items in bags as he clamped a pipe in his mouth. The bags were filled with food supplies, which for some reason Nami seemed to suit the blonde man. He approached the counter as Nami took out her lute and began to tune it.

"Alright," Sanji muttered to himself, pulling five Gold Pieces from his pocket as he held one of the bags in his mouth, as well as his pipe. The keeper took the money as Sanji looked around the place, sighing, "Well, I guess Kuina will be happy staying here rather than in the fields…" He suddenly heard someone strumming an instrument, and he looked over to see a beautiful red haired bard, playing a finely made lute, "MELLORINE!" The adventurer cried, sailing over to the woman. She didn't know what hit her…

"Darling, what name may I give to you, dearest of all angels?" Sanji asked. The woman stopped strumming her lute and he sighed, "Please, my lady, continue playing! It is the most beautiful music I've ever heard, aside (obviously) from your angelic voice which I haven't even heard but am SURE it's beautiful!"

"Uhhh…" The bard murmured, making Sanji go into an orgasmic state, "It's TRUE! Oh, my angel, please, please continuuuuue!"

Nami now wished that she had ANY bodyguards with her, no matter how useless they were…

---

Zoro growled under his breath as he looked around the town of Kyrol for Luffy. That annoying kid… He wanted to wring the clay boy's neck right now. He wandered around the town; nothing looked familiar, and he instantly found himself lost (he didn't even recognize the inn he was staying at as he passed it five times, wandering in circles), "Luuuuffy," He growled as he passed by a little girl, "Where did you go?"

"Luffy?" The girl's ears perked up when hearing the name, and Zoro looked down at the girl. She froze on the spot and turned slowly to the young man, her face showing signs of perspiration, "Wha… what do you want with him?"

"Are you Luffy's friend?" Zoro asked, a smile tugging at his features. A scowl would only scare her away from here on out, "I'm… his Nakama."

The girl looked at Zoro, her eyes wide, and suddenly a smile appeared, "I know you! Luffy said he had found Nakama. Is that you?" Zoro's smile was all the answer she needed, "Wow! You're cooler than I thought! You even have a tiara!"

Zoro sweat a bit, unconsciously touching the circlet on his head, "It's called a circlet… my… sister wears a tiara…" The girl looked sad for being mistaken, and Zoro laughed aloud, "It's okay… my name is Zoro. Yours is?"

"Rika!" The girl replied, giggling into her hands, "You're funny, Zoro! You look like a scary adventurer who hates Luffy but you're really nice!" Zoro simply smiled, and looked around.

"Hey, Rika, have you seen Luffy about? I can't find him anywhere…" Zoro asked. He figured the girl would know, seeing as how she lived here and knew the place better than him (although, for the record, she probably knew any place better than him.). Rika looked at Zoro and nodded a bit.

"Yeah, Luffy is usually…"

"Oh, Zoro, there you are, you lazy bum!" The prince winced when he heard a certain annoying bard speak. Nami was approaching the two, her hands on her hips, "Where have you been? We've been looking all over for you!"

"Nami, what are you doing here?" Zoro asked. There was silence for a moment as he looked behind her, "And who's the tagalong?"

"Tagalong?" The man shouted angrily, grinding his teeth against his pipe, "The name's Sanji! Like you could ever know the finer graces of taking care of a woman, you piece of crap!" Zoro then realized he was carrying multiple bags, filled with items that obviously now belonged to his party member, who was tapping her foot on the ground, "Is this the jerk who's causing you stress, Lady Nami? Allow me to kick the crap out of him!"

"That won't be necessary, Lord Sanji," Nami returned, "I've just heard the juiciest gossip. While you were trapezing about, our friend has gotten away."

"Where's Luffy now?" Zoro asked ("HEY!" Sanji growled as they ignored him, "Pay attention to me, you mound of sheep fodder!").

"Apparently the townspeople who saw him leave say he left with the woman this guy's protecting," Nami poked her thumb back at Sanji as he continued to fume at the prince, "Some say that he's kidnapping her."

"But Lady Nami assured me that whatever your riff raff is doing with My Lady," Sanji explained, "It would not entail hurting her. However, I am bound to protect My Lady until she releases me, so I have no choice but to accompany you to find her."

"Huh, that so?" Zoro asked, scratching his head, "Well then, no use staying here anymore. We have to go to Nigor then, right?"

"Sounds like that's where Sanji's Lady and Luffy are heading anyway, so we won't be going out of our way," Nami said. She then sighed, a little down, "Although we won't be able to spend the night in an inn tonight…"

"Don't worry, Lady Nami! I will make sure you sleep on the softest of clouds tonight, even if I must drag them down from the very skies to let you sleep upon them!" Sanji crooned as Nami led the way out of Kyrol (as Zoro was lost and Sanji was too busy crooning).

"Whatever, come on, everyone, let's go," The bard said, grumbling a bit at the morons who were following her. Zoro took up the rear and Sanji stayed at Nami's heels, although the prince noticed that their new addition seemed… out of it…

"Usopp…" Sanji murmured under his breath, "Where are you? If you left Princess Kuina alone with a wizard that could harm her… I'm going to kill you…" The knight ground his pipe some more, trying not to look as angry as he was. Lady Nami's word or not, a wizard was dangerous… Princess Kuina could be in danger, and it was all that long nosed moron's fault for losing her!

---

"Meri! Meri, I think he's waking up…" Usopp shut his eyes from the bright light that streamed into the room. When he finally tested the light by opening one of his eyes, a young woman who was looking over him turned and addressed someone in the room, "Meri! He's awake! I'm so glad!" The woman turned back to Usopp, her eyes showing glints of sadness, "I was afraid that you had died from the fall…"

Usopp was still woozy. He was pretty sure something important happened. Something about the sky… and falling… and hurting… and… "Kuina!" Usopp cried, sitting up quickly. He immediately realized that was the wrong plan, as pain shot through his chest and left arm. With a cry, he flopped back onto the bed, and realized that he couldn't move, "Wh… what happened?"

"We saw you falling from the sky," The woman replied, "You suffered two rib fractures and one break on your upper arm. It took most of the damage from the fall."

Usopp groaned. That teleportation spell screwed up! Well, at least the wizard hadn't tried to use it on a young girl or Kuina. KUINA! He attempted to sit up again, but the woman's butler was faster. The man named Meri strode across the room in two strides, grabbed Usopp's right shoulder, and thrust him back down, "Kaya told you that you're hurt. Is there something I can do in your stead?"

Usopp looked up at the man, who was smiling. He resembled… a sheep… "K… Kuina. I was supposed to protect her. I… I'm afraid she's in danger."

"Either way," Kaya said, standing up from the chair she was sitting in when she tended to the adventurer, "You can't go saving people in this condition. I'm training to be a priestess, so I know a little about medicines and stuff. I'll get you fixed up in no time, and then you can go find your friend, alright?"

Usopp looked at Kaya, and sighed, relaxing a bit. Kaya looked at Meri; the butler seemed to realize the adventurer gave up a little too easily. He nodded at his mistress, "I will search Nigor for this Kuina woman; you will need your lunch soon, Kaya. Shall I prepare that before I leave?"

Kaya shook her head, "Don't worry about it. Nigor's small, you'll be back in a flash." Meri bowed and walked from the room, closing the doors behind him. Kaya looked at Usopp, and smiled a bit, "It'll only be two days, Mister…" She stopped, wondering what his name was.

"It's Usopp," He replied, settling down as Kaya sat back down on her chair, "You're Kaya?"

The woman nodded, "Uh huh. I'm going to make sure you get enough rest before heading out again. Hopefully you can wait two days for your friend…"

"Sanji's with her…" Usopp interrupted. Kaya blinked, and the sniper elaborated, "My partner, Sanji, would never let anyone hurt Kuina, he'd travel across the world to save her if she was in danger. She'll be safe…"

"Really?" Kaya asked, smiling, "She must be lucky, having such wonderful body guards as you and your partner…"

"Yeah…" Usopp murmured, closing his eyes to rest. He smiled at the wonderful treatment he was getting, "But not as lucky as me…"

TO BE CONTINUED…

---

Hope you liked it blahblahblah review or some crap


	8. The Kyrol Goblin Village

Alright, I finally updated. Um... Beware, it has what people would call UsoKa. Or whatever. And a scary Meri sheep smile.

Please review! I seem to have a feeling that no one reads this. I bet you guys are too lazy to read it all, huh? HUH?

READ ON!

---

The Bard's Song

Chapter 6, The Kyrol Goblin Village

"What are we going to do, Karoo?" Chopper cried as his Caruebo guide rushed down the alleyways of Jion, and down to the portside of the town. The reindeer jumped off and looked at the Caruebo, "What do we do?"

Karoo looked around, wondering what his friend could do to escape. He suddenly gave a squawk and pointed at some barrels. They wouldn't look inside there! He nudged Chopper over to the barrels, "Hurry!" The bird chirped, "Before they find you!" Chopper nodded and crawled inside one empty barrel. Karoo snapped it shut and whirled around, just in time for the Jionian guards to come by.

"Hey, aren't you that Caruebo with the monster?" One asked with suspicion.

Karoo whistled, "Kweeeeeeeeeh," He murmured, trying to look innocent.

"Whatever, he's not around here. Let's go!" The guards rushed off, all but one, who pulled out a cigarette. He walked over to the barrel Chopper was in, and leaned against it, lighting his cigarette. After taking a few puffs, he lost his footing, and Karoo screamed aloud. The barrel tipped… towards… the ocean…

"KWEEEEEEEEEEEHHHH!" Karoo screamed as the barrel toppled into the water. The guard blinked lazily at it, shrugged, and walked off, "Chopper! Chopper, can you hear me?" The small reindeer thrashed a bit in the barrel as it was carried away by the swift current, "Chopper! Whatever you do, stay strong! I'll find a way to come and get you! CHOPPER!"

"Karoo! Karoo, help!" Chopper cried, staring a bit as the barrel lazily floated along the sea. He would never… never get home at this rate…

---

Night had fallen, and Zoro, Nami and Sanji were beginning to set out tents and bed down for the night, but the bard had trouble sleeping. Namely, for one reason.

"Like HELL I'm going to sleep in the same tent as you, bastard!"

"You want some of this, girly tiara boy?"

"It's a CIRCLET. A CIRCLET!"

"Ohhh, pretty boy has a pretty circlet! Let's all look at the pretty boy!"

"Thaaaaat does it!" Nami thrust a pillow over her head as the men continued to bicker, strike that, they weren't men, they were boys. She seriously figured Luffy to be the most mature of the men she hung around with. If only they could catch up to the wizard soon.

The tent a few feet from hers continued to thrash and she sat up with a yawn, intent on beating her other party members into submission. However, before she could even rub her eyes of salt, she was dragged back down to the floor by an intruder in her tent. She opened her eyes wide and stared at the Goblin that was holding her down on the ground, "Are you going to scream now, little lady?" A voice came from across the tent. Her eyes widened as the Goblin holding her down drew out a knife…

---

"KYAAAAAAAA!" Sanji and Zoro gasped when they heard a girly scream, and the Chosen One gave a cry, "Lady Nami!" He shouted, leaping from his tent, only to notice that there was a whole group of Goblins surrounding Nami's tent. It bounced around cartoonishly; a fight just had to be ensuing. Lady Nami was in danger!

Zoro was out of the tent, right behind the cook, although HE had his armor on, "What the hell's going on?" The prince shouted incredulously. The Goblins were alerted to the mens' presense, and turned quickly towards them. There was much shouting in another language, and the two wondered what they were screaming about.

"HA!" A voice came from the tent and a rather frail looking Goblin dressed in the attire of a shaman walked from Nami's tent ("The pervert!" Sanji shouted). Zoro wondered why he had a black eye, "You cannot fight us! Give yourself up, or the girl gets it!"

"KYAAAAAAAA!" The Goblin Shaman was interrupted as another Goblin rushed from the tent; HE was the one emitting the girly scream. Nami, in her white nightgown, followed the Goblin out and chucked another bottle of perfume at him, "You bastard! Don't you DARE enter a woman's domain without her permission!"

"Lady Nami, you're not… hurt, are you?" Sanji asked. Nami turned to the men and smirked, placing a hand on her hip.

"Who the hell gave THIS guy a black eye?" She asked, her smile widening as the shaman grumbled under his breath, grabbing at his bruised eye, "Anyway, could to take care of the rest of these guys for me? I need to get dressed."

"Alright, Lady Nami!" Sanji announced.

"Why can't she be useful in REAL battles?" Zoro grumbled under his breath as he drew his Katana.

"Shut it, you steaming bag of manure!" Sanji roared as he drew his Plexiglas sword and crouched down, ready for battle with his shield in his other hand, "Lady Nami shouldn't even HAVE to fight, let alone do a bit of it for us! Be grateful!"

"Whatever…" Zoro muttered as he rushed into battle, Sanji close on his heels. The battle ensued for a long while, and the Goblins were being cut down left and right. Zoro suddenly heard a grunt, and cursed under his breath as he turned to the side. Sanji dropped to the floor next to him; his head was sporting a rather large lump. He couldn't have gotten knocked out NOW!

Zoro clutched his ears and gave a roar of pain as he heard an earshattering scream. Not only that, but the sound of a stringed instrument added to the horrendous sound. Nami was purposely playing sour notes to stop the enemies from attacking. The only bad thing was, it was ALSO ruining HIS ears, too.

"Is that Lady Nami's beautiful voice?" Sanji asked, peeking his face up from the dirt in his face. Yup, he definitely was delusional. Anyone who thought this voice was "beautiful" needed his brain checked. The Goblins dropped like flies, and Zoro finally thought things were going his way. He could fight the few enemies that remained, with or without Nami's screeching.

"Hey! Ouch, that hurts!" Nami cried, struggling against the Goblin Shaman's grip. He had grabbed the bard's arm and yanked it behind her, pulling up to cause the woman more pain than a Goblin with such strength could deliver normally, "Dammit, this is why I hired bodyguards! Zoro, save me!"

"You were perfectly fine WITHOUT me before the guy touched you! You escape yourself!" The prince shouted in retort.

Nami looked away, puffing her cheeks up, "Everyone knows that no matter how kickass a woman is, if she's touched in any way, she's instantly kidnapped and needs to be saved by a male as soon as possible!"

"That doesn't make SENSE!"

Nami whipped her head back, and her eyes widened, "Zoro! Zoro, watch OUT!" The prince blinked at her, wondering what she was screaming, but he was unable to react when a particularly strong Goblin (He was stronger because he was purple instead of green and his name was "Goblin Cap") slammed a club on Zoro's head. The Prince of Treson dropped to the floor, out cold…

---

The Goblins of Kyrol were in an uproar about the three Humans that were captured by a large scouting force, and instantly alerted their leader, the King of the Kyrol Goblins. The king yawned a bit, and a Human woman followed close behind as he wiped his eyes and wrapped his royal cloak about him to shield himself from the cold, "No fair… so late… why is it so cold?"

"It's dark, silly," The woman said, smiling. The king looked behind him at the woman, and they chuckled a bit to themselves.

"_My Lord!" _The king's advisor, a prominent Kyrol Shaman, proclaimed as the king dropped onto the throne, yawning and rubbing sand from his eyes, _"We have apprehended this Human filth! What would you have us do with them?"_

"_I don't know… lock them up?" _The king inquired. The shaman began to sweat.

"_I was thinking something more along the lines of sacrificing them to our great and perfect god!" _The shaman replied.

There was silence, and the king looked at the woman. They began to laugh a bit, and the king turned back to the shaman, _"Just bring them here. I'll see if they deserve to be sacrificed or whatever." _ The woman continued to giggle.

The king picked at his toenails as the three humans were brought before him. He looked up, and the human woman at his side gave a gasp at the unconscious characters upon the ground, "Z… It's Zoro!"

"Zoro?" The king looked up, and the goblins blinked as their king glared at the shamen, _"You morons! Why did you capture them? They're my Nakama! Treat their wounds and unbind them!"_ His subjects nodded, bowing before Monkey D. Luffy, King of the Kyrol Goblins, as he stood up, putting his hands on his hips, _"And whoever lays a hand on them will have to answer to ME!"_

---

Nefertari Vivi stared out of her second story window that very night; she did not notice the small tear that was sliding down her cheek. She was breathless as she stared at her life: her barn; her field; her Caruebos… All of them… burning in a terrible inferno…

"Carue!" Vivi screeched, wrenching her sight away from the terrible scene before her. Carue was safe within her house, but she had to get to the barn. She would die before she abandoned her Caruebos; they were her life! She grabbed at her favorite Caruebo and mounted him in a flash, urging Carue on to get to the barn. She didn't need a lamp, the fire… was enough…

"Please," She cried, tears streaming down her eyes, "Please, don't be hurt… my babies…" Vivi leapt from the Caruebo she was riding as he neared the barn and shouted behind her as she ran towards the barn door, "Carue, run! Run, I don't want you hurt!" She stopped for only a moment, watching as Carue refused to budge. He couldn't run when his owner was preparing to put herself in harm's way. He let out a sharp "Kweh!" and rushed towards the barn, Vivi at his heels.

The Caruebo Rancher rushed to the barn door, which, for some reason, was perfectly fine (as only the roof was on fire). She gave a grunt as she pulled at the barn door, yanking it open and practically throwing it away to give it as wide a space as she could. She leapt away from the opening and smiled as the Caruebos escaped, crowing as they rushed from the fire. Thank God, they were all okay. Vivi dropped to her knees, hiding her face in her hands as she watched the Caruebos she loved run away. She lost everything; her entire life was gone now. In an attempt to save her Caruebos, she lost them all to the wild. She knew every one of them would be too traumatized to return.

It was then she felt a cool bill against her hot cheek. She reached up and touched Carue's bill, and looked up at her favorite Caruebo, "Carue… You're… still here?" The bird nudged her and cooed, making the woman hug him around the neck, "Carue! Thank you!"

"How… touching…" It was then that Vivi heard a chilling voice. She stood up on shaking legs just in time to meet the eyes of a man walking through the fire to her. He was wearing a cloak, but he had drawn the hood back enough for her to see his sickening smile that made her stomach flip, twice, "I'm rather amazed. You ARE the only rats in this god forsaken place."

"What do you want with me?" Vivi screamed, having to hang onto Carue. He was all she had left, and he was the only one she could lean on now… "Why… How could you do something like this?"

"This?" The man asked, looking around, "Ahhh, this IS a little extreme, even for me. I usually… am stealthier than this. That is, we all are…"

"All?"

"Tsk tsk, my dear," He said raising his hand and wagging his finger back and forth, "You needn't know anymore. The most you should know is that the Shadow Master has paid you a visit. He wants to know… where you let him run off to…

"My little monkey…" The Shadow Master watched as Vivi shivered. She was paralyzed, too scared to speak. With a growl, he raised his hand, fire flaring around it, "Now TELL ME, wench! Where did Monkey D. Luffy go to? Or perhaps you would like to lose MORE than you already have?"

"Carue!" Vivi screamed. The Caruebo screeched in response, and rushed off. Vivi's expertise at riding let her slide neatly onto his back even with her Caruebo breaking into a run. Holding herself close to her Caruebo, she felt his determination, his drive. His desire to keep her away from danger was transferred to her, and although her heart pounded with fear and adrenaline, she felt completely safe with the one being that would NEVER abandon her.

"Kweeeeeh!" Carue screamed as he was caught in a ring of fire. The Shadow Master had cast another fire spell, entrapping them. The Caruebo took a few steps towards the center, and Vivi gave a cry as the Shadow Master walked THROUGH the fire, nary a scratch upon him, and approached the two.

"Done running?" He asked, reaching out to touch the woman with his fire filled fist. She gave a cry and Carue rushed from the man's reach. Vivi hugged her Caruebo close to her and she gave a shout. She screamed:

"Please! Just leave me be! I'll tell you, I'll tell you!"

In another instant, the fire was gone, and the night turned cool once again. Vivi's wide eyes wobbled, her tears flowing freely down her face. He allowed her to speak, raising his hand as if to say "Go on", and she dropped her head in defeat, "He… he and… the prince… and the bard… they came here… and went to Kyrol… on my Caruebos…"

"I should have figured…" The Shadow Master murmured, "He WAS always one step ahead…" Vivi could tell he was surprised; he looked taken aback, "You say… there was a bard? A female?"

Vivi shut her mouth, but it opened once his fist flared up again, "Yes! She was a woman! She… was the Great Furenti! The famous bard! Please, PLEASE!"

"That's all I needed…" The Shadow Master murmured, the fire snuffing out as soon as it appeared. He turned and waved with the back of his hand, "I think you, my lady. You were very helpful in my search…" And, without another word, a dark portal appeared, and he walked straight through it, disappearing into the night.

Vivi slumped over Carue, who gave a Kweh of encouragement to the woman. She sobbed over her bird for a few minutes, and the bird looked stunned when she suddenly looked up, her tears still prominent upon her face, "Carue…" She said, looking down at her pet with determination in her eyes, "We need to go find Mister Luffy. We need to warn him of the danger he and Miss Nami are in! HUT!" She turned her bird to the side, and in a flash, they were off. She was leaving everything she knew behind; her home for years on end. However, there was not much left to live with. It was time for her to be strong, and help those people. She knew that it was what her father would want her to do…

---

Zoro snorted a bit as he felt something poke into him. Another poke, and another. It was rather annoying. There was talking, talking he didn't understand, and a shout of joy. Then, one more poke. This time, his hand swept up and snatched at the stick that was poking his cheek, and the voice gave a cry of displeasure. The prince opened his eyes, and gave a shout of disgust when he saw that a young Goblin was staring into his face, "What the? Get away from me, you…" The child suddenly burst into tears, and Zoro sweat a bit as the boy cried.

"Oh no! Gruka, is something the matter?" Zoro blinked as the tent flap was thrown back, and a familiar female face rushed in. She swept the boy into her arms and hugged him tight, "Did my scary brother scare you? Poor baby…"

"ME?" Zoro shouted as Gruka began to settle down, "That's hardly fair! He was the one poking me! AND WAIT, why are YOU here?"

"You don't get it, my dear brother…" Zoro's sister, Kuina, said through a smile, "You and I and everyone else are the honorary guests of the Kyrol Goblins! Funny thing is, the Kyrol Goblins aren't desert Goblins, they're river side Goblins."

"Who… why?" Zoro stood and dusted himself off. As he looked around for his cape and circlet, his sister explained, "You'll have to ask the king. He should be in the town square right now. He was waiting for you to awaken." Zoro didn't get the riddle, and wrapped his cape around him. He left his sister to calm down the Goblin boy, and walked out into the sun.

The Kyrol Goblin village was rather large, compared to what he imagined to be two or three tents filled with an orgy of evil, monstrous Goblins, eating the flesh of Human and spitting bones out for the buzzards to take for themselves. No, once he saw Nami, sitting upon an upturned basket, singing sweet songs of gallant knights and the famous Gold Roger, he couldn't help but smile. The children were entranced with love for the songs; even though they didn't understand the lyrics, they loved the music. Zoro laughed inwardly, "Who doesn't love that bard's song?" He whispered to himself.

"Hey, you're finally up, Moss Head?" All tranquility was shot in an instant when he heard the drawl of a rather annoying Chosen One in the tent across from him. The flap was pinned open, which provided a great window for the man to look at him. He was cooking, like usual, although he seemed to be playing "Head Chef" and overseeing the cooking of the Goblin maids. Zoro blinked at the man, who, even though he was wordlessly addressing monsters, he treated them with the same respect and devotion he would give to any Human woman. Seeing only stuck up nobility most of his life, Zoro was taken aback as he saw that there were indeed chivalrous men that Nami was singing about around this world, "Get over here, and test this soup Kina's making! She's put her heart into it, so don't you DARE spit it back out!"

The prince was about to shout back that he didn't need to listen to SANJI, much less taste any food, but he looked down at the young girl, Kina, instead. She held Sanji's ladle up to the prince's face, filled with food she cooked but learned to make from the head chef. He took it and eyed the knight, who was watching Kina's wide, bright eyes with a smile plastered on his self. He slurped down the concoction, taking a piece of cooked carrot with it, and licked his lips, "Hey, it's pretty good!"

Sanji puffed up at the prince's congratulatory exclamation, and even though Kina could not understand Zoro's language, his smile was enough for her to figure out exactly what he said. She shouted something he couldn't understand, grabbed the ladle back from Zoro, and rushed off to tell her friends about what the HUMAN said about her food! Sanji smiled at the women as they cheered about their soup, and looked up. Zoro was already gone. The cook shook his head serenely, and looked back down at the women as they continued to work, "I guess…" He murmured, grinding his unlit pipe in thought, "Even… monsters… can be Human…"

---

Aside from the fact that he could not understand a word the Goblins spoke, Zoro saw that this place was not unlike Treson Town… There were children playing as the men and women worked, and not ONE of them was eating the roasted thigh of a Human Being! He soon found himself at home here. He found himself even MORE at home when he finally walked into the square, and found the person he was looking for. Only, he was wearing something over his straw hat… "L… Luffy?"

"Hey! Zoro, you're awake!" Luffy proclaimed. The shaman behind the boy shook his head softly as the clay boy leapt from his throne and put his hands on his hips joyously, "Now we match! We're both royalty!"

Zoro blinked at the tarnished gold trinket that hugged the boy's straw hat. The Goblins had obviously stolen it from Human hands long before he was even born, and chuckled, "Royalty? What are you talking about?"

"I'm Monkey D. Luffy, King of the Kyrol Goblins!" Luffy announced, holding his arms out and gesturing with a flourish all of the people that were under his rule. The shaman behind Luffy gave a snort, and the clay boy looked up at the fellow king, "Isn't that awesome, Zoro? I leave home for a while and come home to be reminded that I'm old enough to be crowned ruler!"

Zoro was still confused, "Luffy, what are you talking about? You aren't Goblin, heck, you're too tall to even be HALF Goblin. How can you be King?"

"I… may be able to explain…" The High Shaman that humbly stood behind Luffy's throne came forward. Zoro looked at the shaman as he stood up straight, placing his stubby arms behind himself, and continued in the Common tongue, "Master Luffy… is not Goblin. It all started back when I was a young boy, working as an apprentice under the High Shaman who worked with our former King…"

---

"_My Lord!"_ The King of the Kyrol Goblins stared at the woman that stood before them. She hugged a bundle to herself, and at her side, clutching clumps of her dirty skirt in his tiny fists, was a young boy. Even now, his face was littered with freckles. The High Shaman held his hand out to touch his king in an attempt to keep him away from the messy couple, _"Get away! Someone such as yourself should not touch unclean monsters like these barbaric Humans!"_

The king kept his underling silent, and took a step forward, towards the woman who hunched over at the sight of the Goblins. The young boy gave the king a scowl, "Don't touch my mommie!" The boy growled, "You're a bad person! You're a monster!"

The king barely had time to translate the Common tongue in his mind before the woman reprimanded her son, "Ace! Quiet! You mustn't say such words!" And, after said words, the king gasped in astonishment as the woman dropped to her knees, tears streaking down her dirty face, "My… My Lord, do you understand us?"

"I… I speak…" The king murmured, taking another step forward, towards the bundle the woman held so fiercely to her breast. She held the small bits of cloth up as if in sacrifice, and the woman bowed her head low as Ace gave sharp shouts of anger.

"Please!" She cried, shutting her eyes so she couldn't see the precious package she held. Ace attempted to wrench the item from his mother's hands, "Take him! Take care of him! Let him grow in a place where he is safe!"

"Mother! Stop! Don't give my brother away!" Ace screamed, his eyes not filling with tears, "Don't give him away! Luffy!" The king nodded, and Ace's eyes filled with fire as the Goblin took the bundle in his arms, understanding completely.

"_My Lord! Surely you aren't saying…"_ The High Shaman gasped.

"_Indeed, he is under my jurisdiction now,"_ The king replied. He looked at the woman, who restrained her son, her head still bowed so she could not see the baby that cooed in the Goblin's arms, "Do not fear, Woman. He will be well cared for. Perhaps… this boy will be the link that unites the Humans and Goblins together… someday, we may live together in unity…"

"It's not FAIR!" Ace screamed, "Give my brother back! He doesn't deserve this! It's not our fault! It's…" Ace's mother finally found his mouth, and covered it with her hand. She, despite her lanky build, lifted the boy easily from the ground, and thanked the king profusely.

"Be good, my baby…" She murmured, turning around and dragging her defiant son behind her before she could change her mind, "My darling Luffy…"

---

The present High Shaman nodded, "I was standing right behind the shaman who taught me all those years ago, and saw the entire thing. The king gave Master Luffy the family name Grilak, which in Goblin means _'Monkey'_, and added 'Darling' to his name, to always remind the master of his true heritage."

"And that's why my name is Monkey D. Luffy!" The king proclaimed excitedly, "Awesome story, huh? I have a BROTHER!"

Zoro sweat a bit, "I don't think that's the ONLY thing that's important about that story…" He muttered with a twitch. Luffy wore that same smile, and Zoro couldn't help but smirk a bit at the young man as he looked up at Treson's Prince. He leaned back, resting his hand on his Katana, "So that's why we weren't harmed when the party abducted us. Pretty smooth, Mister King. I guess someone up there loves me."

"Either that or Nami or that new guy," Luffy said, "He was so happy when he found out that Kuina was safe! He promised to make her a big, delicious breakfast. Why can't he cook for ME? I'm royalty too!"

"Kuina!" Zoro snapped his fingers in realization, "I remember now! Why IS Kuina here anyway? We left her back at the castle!"

"Apparently," Luffy said as he thought about it, placing his hands behind his head as he spoke, "She forced the new guy and a long nosed person to take her to you. She must REALLY love you, to abandon her duties to look for you." Zoro looked away. Sometimes, he wished that she just listened to him. She took after him a little too much…

---

Meanwhile, Kuina was in the process of cleaning up the Gruka's face. It was rather dirty now, because the Goblin had been playing. Gruka whined a bit in his language about her fussing, and she finally released him so he could go play. As he rushed off, she stood up and brushed some dust from her skirt. She turned around, and gave a squeak.

"Please excuse me!" The Goblin Shaman before her said. She had learned quickly that the shamans of the place had learned Common. All the other Goblins only knew Monster Common. At least it was easy for her to speak to these people through them, "I was told by the High Shaman to show you around with my bodyguards," He motioned at the Goblin Caps behind him, and smiled at the woman, "He says that the river is beautiful nowadays…"

"Please excuse me," Kuina replied, bowing slightly. She remembered how people treated her and decided that it would be good to mimic them, "I'm a little busy here. Gruka and I are having…" She gave a gasp as one of the captains approached and grabbed her wrist.

"I'm… afraid we cannot take 'no' for an answer," The shaman said as Kuina attempted to wrench free, "Barbaric Human that you are, I doubt you even understand…" He motioned for the captains, and spoke in his tongue to his lackeys. The one who had his hand on her dragged her into the air. She gave a scream.

"_You fools!" _The shaman gave a hoarse whisper, checking behind him warily, _"They'll hear! Get her out of here, now!"_

"_What are you doing?" _Gruka asked, being attracted by Kuina's screams. The young Goblin blinked at the three before him, _"Why are you taking Lady Kuina away?"_

"_You need not know such information, Gruka. Go about your business." _The shaman said motioning for the other two Goblin Caps to follow him towards the river.

"Gruka! Gruka, help me!" Kuina cried, attempting in vain to wrench free from her captive. Gruka had no idea what she was saying, "Get help! Hurry! Gruka!" The Goblin didn't know what she said, but she knew she was scared, and he needed to find those Humans. They would help her! As he rushed off, he began shouting loudly among the village. Oh, he just hoped he would be able to tell them what needed to be said. Really, trying to understand their language was like trying to understand a snail!

---

"Master Usopp, what are you doing?" Meri asked of Usopp after the butler found the sniper up and about through Kaya's mansion.

Usopp smirked a bit, happily answering, "I'm exploring the place! I usually don't like being inside, it's so confining. Now that I'm wandering around, though, it's so huge! Do you really live here with Kaya? Where are her parents?"

Meri blinked at the young man, and looked away with a sad smile on his face, "The mistress' parents… are gone…

"Her father left with a friend of his, to search for the legendary Excalibur and become the greatest swordsman in the world. Her mother died shortly after, from an illness that wracked her body and killed her before we could even find out what was wrong. It was because of this that the mistress decided to take up the cloth of the priestess. She wanted to know how to heal people so no one else could die in her sight."

Usopp blinked, and smiled a bit, "It's a good thing she did. If… she hadn't been there…"

"You needn't worry, Master Usopp. Nigor has plenty of powerful priests and priestesses. I bet… you would have been treated in time," Meri replied, that sheep-like smile plastered on his face. Usopp sweated, a little put off by it.

"So… um… Where is Kaya, anyway?" he asked, looking around the main hall, which they were in at the moment.

"Were you asking for me, Usopp?" The two turned towards the door up on the second floor that led to the west wing. Meri smiled at the young woman, but Usopp could not help but stare at the strange, but beautiful, attire she was wearing. It was the garb of a priestess, he could see, but the ceremonial robes were slightly altered from the ones he had seen when he was a child in his hometown. He remembered that when Humans branched out from their birthplace (The Holy Isle), those in different villages did what they could to separate themselves from their neighbors. So this was the Nigor priestess' ceremonial dress garb. It was… enchanting, to say the least…

"Usopp, are you okay?" Kaya asked as she decended the stairs towards the two men, "Is something wrong?"

The sniper laughed aloud (and gulping a bit from the pain it caused in his not-completely healed-yet-ribs) "I… I'm fine. I was just wondering why you weren't around. Yet now I'm wondering why you're dressed so…" Usopp paused as he chose his next word. Very… very… carefully, "formally…"

"Oh," Kaya said, looking at her robes, "Yes, today's the Harvest Festival." She blinked at Usopp's blank face, and smiled, "Well, Nigor's Harvest Festival, at least. We tend to do things… differently from the book. It's two weeks before the usual date of the Harvest Festival, I heard. Is it true?"

Usopp nodded. His face was still blank, and Kaya smiled, "Well then, since it's Nigor's Harvest Festival today, I'm going to be a part of the ceremony."

"Come now, Lady Kaya," Meri replied, "You are the STAR!" Usopp turned to Meri and the butler puffed up with pride, "Lady Kaya is the most beautiful singer in all of Nigor! She will sing the hymn thanking God for the great harvest we have had this year. I am so proud of her, I only wish her father were here to see it!"

Usopp chuckled. Yeah, he certainly did seem proud. Perhaps after all these years, he thought of Kaya as his daughter. Would that be bad though, for a butler to love his mistress that much? The sniper blinked at the priestess-in-training, and he frowned a bit when he saw that some saddened features tugged at her face, "Hey, Kaya, is something the matter?"

"Huh?" The young woman looked up, and shook her head, smiling, "N… it's nothing. I was just thinking about how you'll be too handicapped to see me." Silence. Usopp cocked his head, "I can't let you go out like that; there are too many people around during a festival!"

"Lady Kaya, perhaps you're over thinking this," Meri replied, "I will be watching, you kno…"

"Indeed, Meri," Kaya said, "You'll be watching him here, if you would." Usopp hadn't realized it yet, but "If you would" was Kaya slang for "It's a direct order". Meri simply nodded, and Kaya gave Usopp a slight bow and started for the door, "And now, Mister Usopp, please, take the rest of the day off here." By the way she closed the door; Usopp could already tell that "Please" was Kaya slang for "You're obligated to". His frown creased rather sharply at that realization.

"Is something bothering you, Master Usopp?" Meri asked, noticing Usopp's frown, "Please don't worry about Kaya. She is actually a very willful girl, you know."

"No…" Usopp murmured, staring at the door the lady had left through, as if waiting for her to come back from that same portal. He turned to Meri, his eyes flashing, "No, something is wrong. TERRIBLY wrong!"

---

"No! Oh no oh no oh no!" Sanji proclaimed after Gruka lead both the knight and Nami to the location of the scuffle, "Princess Kuina! FORGIVE ME!" He dropped to the ground, pounding the dirt and asking the heavens to forgive him for his selfish actions that included not-protecting-such-a-wonderful-woman-as-Kuina-every-second-of-his-life.

"Um… Lord Sanji…" Nami murmured, "It's not your fault, you couldn't have known that those Goblins were going to kidnap Princess Kuina."

"That, Lady Nami, is where you're wrong," Sanji replied matter-of-factly, standing up from the ground, and turning to the bard, "for all my life as a knight and protector, I have known one simple fact: if there is a princess around, sooner rather than later she will be kidnapped."

"Oh…" Nami replied, blinking.

"Well then, Lady Nami, I would thank you to meet with Luffy and Moss Head and tell them about Kuina's kidnapping. If anyone can stop these Goblins without bloodshed, it's their king!"

TO BE CONTINUED…

---

Waumguh Cliffhanger! Dundundun! Oh yeah, and review, please.


	9. An Absolute Failure

How long has it been since I updated this? I was bogged down by the angst and couldn't crawl out of it... but now I've finished this seventh chapter! Please forgive me for taking so long, and please, read on!

---

The Bard's Song

Chapter 7, An Absolute Failure

Chopper began to cry. His cries came in bubbling sobs, and he couldn't hold the tears in the completely watertight barrel, and he felt a sudden fear grab hold of him. What if he cried so much the tears filled the barrel and he drowned?

"No… no one would care…" The reindeer continued to cry as he came upon this realization. Everyone thought he was a monster. He shouldn't have existed. It was all that dumb Luffy's fault! Why was Zoro even friends with him, anyway?

"Gee…" Chopper murmured, "It's… getting kinda hard to breath in here…" he suddenly realized it was because of the lack of oxygen, and he looked up at the top of the barrel. Should he open it? If he did, it may capsize and fill with water and he'd drown, but…

"I don't… wanna drown, that'd be so scary," The reindeer sniffed, "And… it's not too bad… suffocating…" His eyes drooped. He was so tired, "If I… went to sleep, I probably won't wake up. I wouldn't… mind dying if I…" He dropped off to sleep, falling asleep in a small puddle of his own tears…

Meanwhile, right outside the barrel, which was at the moment only a hundred yards away from a distant beach, two siblings that looked very much alike blinked at the tiny dot that came into view.

The younger one, a dark haired girl with big, bright eyes, smiled at the sight before her, "Some more driftwood, Sister!"

"Indeed," The older one replied. She was much older than her younger sister, but they looked like they could be twins, which was why they were called twins by the other townspeople they lived with. The older sister looked at her little sister, who was named after her mother, "Olivia, could you bring it in? Are you going to use it to keep building your raft?"

"Not MY raft, Robin!" Olivia replied, rushing off to collect the barrel, "It'll be a raft all of us can use to go home!" Robin smiled a bit at the sight of her happy sister, and she gasped when she suddenly heard Olivia cry, "Sister! Sister! It's not JUST driftwood, it's a barrel!" Robin rushed to join her sister as the little girl attempted to pull the barrel with Chopper in it up on shore.

---

"Alright, we're heading off to a temple on the riverbank near the Kyrol Goblin Village, right?" Sanji asked the person behind him as the two walked.

"Uh huh," Came the reply.

"And Princess Kuina is trapped there, kidnapped by evil Goblins that will probably try to do her physical harm, right?"

"Uh huh."

"And it's up to us to fend them off until reinforces arrive, right?"

"Uh huh."

"Then answer me this," Sanji turned to face Nami the Bard, who was walking just a foot behind the knight, "Why are you coming with me, Lady Nami? You may be hurt, and I couldn't bear to see you harmed by such… monsters."

Nami shouldered her lute and put on a high and mighty air, "I couldn't just let you go by yourself while I saved myself and asked my bodyguards to protect you." She stopped as if thinking of the next thing to say. She hesitated, but continued, "You know, it's kinda weird, but I keep thinking that if there's anything I could do, I need to make sure you don't get hurt."

"So sweet," Sanji cooed, clasping his hands together. Nami rolled her eyes as the man's eye turned into a heart and he began doing a jig of escalation, "My Lady, you care that much for me? And we've only just met!"

He stopped when the woman slammed a fist on his head, and a heart shaped lump appeared where he had been hit, "You'd better keep your mouth shut, it's nothing like that," Nami said. Beginning to collect herself, she continued, "I just… it's like it's a job of mine or something. Like my dad would get mad at me if I didn't watch your back."

"Your father?" Sanji questioned, intent on hearing more about the beautiful orange haired bard. Nami cut him off with a quick, "It's nothing", and the knight fell quiet in respect for her wishes. The two walked on in complete silence for a while longer, along the riverbank, until he spoke up again, hoping to make a little conversation as they walked, "Well, hopefully Zoro and Luffy'll get here soon. That Goblin boy'll be able to communicate with that clay boy better than he did with us anywa…" He was cut off by Nami, who took his shoulder and pointed at the temple that loomed before them.

"We can save the small talk for later," The bard said dramatically, "We have a princess to save."

---

"You just wait!" Kuina shouted as she flailed angrily. She never would have imagined that there were so many Goblins in one measly little temple! They all looked so scary, big, hulkish brutes that handled her in ways a high borne lady had never even HEARD of! They dragged her about and hefted her from the ground. Then they bound her to a stone alter, the one in front of the giant stone statue of their god. She hated being stuck here like a wriggling trout, and continued to flail, "You'll be sorry for this! My brother… when he comes… you'll wish you were NEVER born!"

"It's rather frustrating, you know…" The lone shaman in the temple murmured, rubbing the gem that rested upon his staff, also stolen from humans long ago, "That such a young king would ruin centuries of work that God has graced us with. It's frustrating that I have to stand there and watch as our new king ruins everything…" The shaman closed his eyes, and shook his head back and forth, "But I have discovered a solution." He pointed to one of the Goblin warriors, and barked an order in their tongue. Afterwards, he looked back at Kuina, and he smiled, showing his yellowing canines, "If the one who started this is given in sacrifice to God, he will surely bless us with a new king! A more… fitting king…"

"You're just mad that everything's not going your way!" Kuina shouted, still struggling like a trout on a hook, "Zoro'll find out. He will, I know. He's going to rescue me, I just know it!" She stopped, and gave a cry as the warrior who was ordered beforehand took the princess' bangs, and wrenched her head back, leaving her neck exposed. The tears that sprung to her eyes were not ones of shock, but of fear. As the shaman took the flint knife, used for sacrificial rites, and held it aloft; she squeezed her eyes shut. She was going to die, right now…

…Except she didn't. The flint was dropped from the Goblin's hand, the woman's hair, released. Kuina suddenly heard a buzzing in her ears. The adrenaline had destroyed her nerves before, but now she could hear the screeching of a familiar voice… "Ahhh, Lady Nami, your inhuman screaming is music even to MY ears!" It was Sanji and Nami! They came to save her!

"Sanji! Nami!" Kuina exclaimed, not even realizing how much her ears hurt from Nami's attack. She was just so glad that someone came! Sanji closed his eyes and lit his pipe, making sure he was completely prepared for battle, "SAVE ME!"

"Princess Kuina," Sanji murmured, "Just wait for me, I'll save you!" Nami took a step forward, but the knight held his hand out, "Lady Nami, please, stand aside, I will not allow them to harm you, either."

"Sanji! I can't just sit here and WATCH you fight!"

"Get them!" The shaman shouted, pointing directly at the two. Nami gasped at the ten Goblins and two Goblin Caps that were charging down at them, and the bard clasped her hand on the knight's exceptionally large ("Just barely fitting on his sprite" large) pauldron, "Alright then, Sanji, I leave the rest to you!" And with that, the bard whirled around and trotted off to hide behind one of the temple pillars.

"Of course, Lady Nami! Just leave it to me!" The Chosen One replied, dragging out his Plexiglas Sword and dragging down his shield. It was time to fight…

The twelve Goblins clashed with the knight, and Kuina gave a shout of, "Get them! Mash them to bits! Make them feel SORRY they EVER THOUGHT of TOUCHING me!"

"Alright, Princess Kuina, we get the point!" Nami roared from across the rectangular temple. Three goblins were already down; one was knocked out cold after being bludgeoned by Sanji's own shield.

"Sanji!" The first strike was laid at that moment, from the side by a nasty club. It stunned the knight for a moment, but he was able to lift his leg up and stop the next attack with the club with his boot. He held another's attack with his shield, and was barely able to stab at another enemy with the sword. The battle was going pretty poorly with just one leg to stand on and enemies coming from all sides. Kuina shut her eyes tight when she heard a shout, and the knight slid the shielding foot down so he could give the other foot, the one with the knife stuck in its back, a chance to rest a bit.

"Damn you! Have you no knowledge of CHIVALRY, you MONSTERS?" Sanji roared, making Nami shiver from the name as the Goblin with the club's head flew from his shoulders from a Plexiglas attack. After all this time, they were laughing and having fun with the Goblins as if they were Human, and now… "Fight me like a HUMAN!"

The fighting became worse. The shaman, who Nami had no doubt in her mind he knew EXACTLY was Sanji was saying, shouted something at the Goblins in their language and they went insane. They raged like caged animals, and that made the knight fight even fiercer. The fight became even bloodier, and Nami watched in surprise as the Goblins began to drop like flies.

The fight finally broke apart for a few seconds. Two Goblins, and one of the Goblin Caps remained, and Sanji fought to stay upright from the various wounds. He must have trained his legs very well, many of the attacks he sustained were around his legs, and yet he remained upright even after all of that abuse! Nami wondered if he could stay up even after being hamstrung, but that seemed unlikely, as it would be impossible to stand with strong muscles if they were cut off. She shook her head from the bloody thoughts as Sanji prepared once again for battle.

With a roar, he skewered one more Goblin before the Goblin Cap slammed a mace onto the Chosen One's head. He dropped to the ground, his head hitting the ground with such force that his nose nearly broke. That didn't stop it from spilling blood and phlegm on the floor, however.

"Lord Sanji!" Nami shouted, rushing from her hiding place, her lute flying, "Leave Lord Sanji alone!"

"Lady Nami, run!" Sanji cried desperately, his throat burning from the roaring he had been through; his lungs threatening to burst from the labor they were experiencing, "Get Luffy! Get him!" Nami hesitated for only a moment, and that was all the Goblins needed. The last Goblin standing had snuck behind the bard, and before she could turn to face him, the woman felt something stick deep into her back. Her eyes widened when she realized what had happened, and Sanji roared at the unfair play at work in this temple, "You BASTARD! She wasn't even ARMED!"

"P… Papa Gen…" Nami murmured, her eyes drooping as she fell to the floor, "So this is what it feels like… to die…"

"NAMI!" Kuina screamed, her voice being mirrored by Sanji's own "Lady Nami!" The princess struggled where she was bound, and Sanji felt the Cap brutally kick him in the side.

"Fah," The Shaman said, rubbing the crystal upon his staff, "So this is the mighty Chosen One, the one who will destroy evil with the Plexiglas Sword… YOU, you fool, do not even deserve to be called 'warrior'! You are pathetic!" He sneered at Sanji as the man decended from Gold Roger lifted his head to spit blood at the Goblin, "You, foolish human, are an absolute failure…"

Sanji opened his mouth to say something… but could find no words to hiss. How could one deny what was true? If he was anything more than a complete failure… he could have protected Nami… he could have saved Kuina… Consciously, the Plexiglas Sword slipped from his fingers, and he gave up completely, "P… Princess Kuina… I'm sorry… you had to see me this way… if only I weren't…"

"You AREN'T a failure, Sanji!" He looked up at the young woman, still bound to the altar like an unstained lamb, "I KNOW you aren't! Trying your best to save me…" She smiled a bit, "Was enough…"

"P… Princess Kuina…" Sanji whispered. He was cut off as he was kicked again in the side, and he practically passed out from the white hot pain that seared through his entire body, "Forgive me!"

"ALRIGHT… If those words don't come from that High Shaman piece of CRAP in TWO seconds, I'm tearing his bastard body LIMB FROM LIMB!" The voice was unmistakable; it was obvious that the new person in the archway of the temple was…

"Zoro!" Kuina cried, eyes filling with tears, "You came!"

"And don't forget me!" Luffy proclaimed, standing alongside the prince, his rusty crown still fitting snugly around his straw hat, "I think it's about time Jikor learns who's boss around here!"

"B… BOSS?" The Goblin Shaman (whose name was Jikor, obviously) roared, "You honestly expect to believe that I would ever bow to an upstart HUMAN as you?" He spat upon the ground, slightly further than Sanji's original spit. Afterwards, he grabbed at the flint knife and lifted it high into the air, his eyes flaring with malice, "Come and kill me, for your darling female Human will be first to die!"

"Kuina!" Zoro's terrified cry ripped through the temple, showing his utmost love for his sister. If she died…

"Zoro!" Kuina's cry for her brother was a desperate, shrill squeal, "SAVE ME!" The prince needed no more incentive; with speed that nearly made him impossible to track, the adventurer was off like a shot to her side. He drew the Wadou Ichimonji just in time to slice the remaining Goblin Cap's head from the monster's shoulders before the enemy could stop the prince. Sanji prayed deep down that the princess would be safe…

"You can't stop me!" Jikor shouted maniacally, his mind shattered from his desire to perform the sacrifice and his knowledge that he would not live to see the next day. Zoro could not believe his eyes as the knife was brought down, straight for his sister's heart… He wouldn't make it… He wouldn't…

"Fire!" Jikor roared in pain as Luffy's magic hit home, slamming directly into the Shaman's head. He dropped the knife, and turned to see the prince, his eyes alight with his own fire.

"And now… You have learned your last lesson," Zoro murmured as Wadou slid into the Goblin's stomach, making Jikor hack up a fountain of blood on the prince's fineries, "Never… touch my sister…"

Luffy whistled as Jikor's lifeless body slid to the floor, staining the altar with not Kuina's, but his, blood, "Nice, Zoro…" The Goblin king said happily.

The prince did not revel in the killing of the humanoid, but went instead to Kuina. He had wiped Wadou of blood, and he tenderly cut his sister loose. She was up and hugging the last of her family the very second, an ecstatic grin plastered on her face, "Thank you… so much… Zoro…"

"Kuina," Zoro tenderly took his sister and lifted her from the altar, placing her on the floor. Kuina's smile to her brother made it completely worth rushing into a temple without thinking to save her. Then, in the next moment, that feeling ended as she released her brother and rushed away from him, straight towards the wounded Sanji. Zoro could literally feel his blood boil as he watched her kneel down to tend to the Chosen One.

"Sanji, are you okay?" She asked as she held the man's head up so she could get a good look at him. He was covered in gouges and bruises, and he may not have made it if Kuina wasn't there to heal him, "I'm sorry you got hurt for me…"

The man was uncharacteristically quiet as his wounds disappeared (as usually he would have gone into "Mellorine!" mode), and as he sat up, he shook his head, "I… that Goblin bastard was right… I am… not fit to fight for peace any longer… If I cannot…"

"Sanji…"

Sanji continued, heeding not Kuina's soft plea, "If I cannot protect a woman such as you, or… Lady Nami…"

"Nami!" Kuina gasped in realization, and hopped up to rush over to the bard's side. Kuina checked her vitals, and sighed happily, "She's alive! Sanji, she's…" The princess turned, and her face fell as Luffy spoke what she already figured out:

"I'm sorry, Kuina, but he's already left…" The clay boy picked up the sword that Sanji left behind, looking at it, "And he left his weapon, too. It doesn't… look all that special… Just weird…"

"The… Plexiglas Sword… is special in the fact that no one but Gold Roger's decendants can weild it properly…" The group looked at Nami as she sat up; her dagger wound all but disappeared. She stretched a bit and looked at Luffy, "And yet… if Lord Sanji… were to throw it aside like that… He must be serious about throwing aside his adventuring persona…"

"Persona?"

"He's stopping his adventuring!" Nami said desperately, actually looking frightened at this fact, "He's not going to fight like he should!"

"He should?" Zoro asked, raising an eyebrow as Luffy poked the sword, "Just what are you saying? That Sanji HAS to fight? Just because he's a decendant of some guy and can use a stupid sword doesn't mean he HAS to do anything. If he wants to chicken out like a wuss, I'm not stopping him."

Nami looked away, her fists balled up in anger at the fact that Zoro was both annoying and right. She sighed, and looked at Luffy, "But… if he does decide to… rejoin… Luffy… can I borrow his sword?"

The Goblin king looked at Nami and nodded, handing the Plexiglas creation to the Bard, who tucked it tenderly away in her inventory. She didn't look happier that she was in possession of Sanji's sword; on the contrary, Kuina could see that there was a weight that came along with the weapon. She put on a faux smile and nodded, "Alright, we should…" The group then gasped as Kuina suddenly dropped, falling into Nami's arms.

"Kuina!" Zoro practically phased next to the women, and he took his unconscious sister in his arms. After closer inspection, he gave a sigh of relief, "She… she's fine, just tired. It's been a while since she healed so much at one time. Luffy," The prince turned to Luffy, who nodded.

"Right, let's get back to the village, then," The clay boy said, "Kuina needs some time to rest!"

---

"Master Usopp! Master Usopp!" Usopp turned around, sweating a bit. Dangit, he was caught! Just as he got his first whiff of freedom, too! "What do you think you're doing? Lady Kaya told you to stay inside!"

Usopp sighed a bit, and closed the large front door that led to the outside, "Come on, Meri, I need to see Kaya singing! It's the least I can do to thank her." The butler looked at the sniper, thinking intently about the subject, and Usopp chuckled a bit. Suddenly, Meri snapped his fingers and held his finger up.

"Alright then, Master Usopp, you can go see Lady Kaya, but on one condition," Meri said, "I need to accompany you. I wouldn't be able to stand it if you were jostled by the crowd and hurt by the people."

"Would I subject you to the inability to see your lady sing, Meri?" Usopp asked, smiling. The butler nodded, a smile on his face.

"Really, though, Master Usopp," Meri murmured, leaving the mansion with a handicapped Usopp at his side, "You mustn't try and speak like I do. Really, it makes you sound less than sophisticated…" Usopp merely chuckled. The hair on the back of his neck suddenly stood on end when he heard a squeal from multiple effeminate objects, and he turned to see three women trying to flag him down.

"So THIS is the totally adorable cutiepie that Kaya had taken in!" They proclaimed, "Come sit next to ME during the festival! Please?"

"No! Me!"

"But he'd look cuter with ME!"

Meri simply smiled as Usopp began to hop away, assisted by his crutch, "Hurry, Meri! Before we get caught up in the battle!" Indeed, the three women were already clawing at each other for the honor of being next to the wounded sniper. They drew such a crowd that it was easy for the adventurer and his entourage to get a seat close to the statue of the great god that created the world and all within it. In a few moments, the festival would start, and Usopp could see Kaya sing that hymn! He couldn't wait…

---

"Gahhh… I think Kuina has the right idea…" Zoro muttered, dropping to the floor, legs crossed, after placing his sister on the bed in one of the Goblin village's tents. She was sleeping soundly, and it made the rest of the group feel like they should all drop to sleep as well. Only Luffy was in thought, which surprised Nami, as Luffy was the one who always seemed the most laid back, "What's up, Luffy?"

"Huh?" The young man looked at the bard, and he took the crown from his straw hat, blinking at it, "It's just… I was thinking about this."

"Your crown?" Nami asked, confused, "What about it?"

"I was thinking of what Jikor said," Luffy replied, and even Zoro seemed to be listening in on the conversation, "You know, about Humans and Goblins not getting along…" Nami rubbed her arm as she thought of what Sanji had said during his battle, about the Goblins being monsters, and she sighed sadly. However, she didn't say anything even while Luffy continued, "I was just wondering if my dad, my Goblin dad, was being too… too…"

"Optimistic?" Zoro threw the word out for his friend.

"Yeah, optomistric!" Luffy replied, making both Nami and Zoro stare at each other, sighing a bit, "Yeah, too optomistric about Humans and Goblins living together. I was just thinking, you know? What if I'm not cut out for being the king of a village of goblins?"

"Well, not EVERYONE'S cut out to be king," Zoro said, "God always puts the people who REALLY should rule before everyone else." Nami scoffed a bit at his demeanor.

"Indeed, and YOU'RE the pinnacle of royalty?" Nami asked, glaring at him.

"Of course not," He replied, turning to give his sleeping sister a warm smile, "Kuina takes that title… I'm just in second." Nami threw her hands up as if to say "I rest my case".

---

Usopp sat in one of the front row chairs as the mayor of the village began his opening statements. The young sharpshooter shuffled in his seat. He didn't want to wait through all of this; he wanted to hear Kaya and eat some of the harvested food! His mouth began to water from imagining all the good foods he would soon eat, and imagining all that food made him lose track of time. He suddenly looked up when he heard the mayor cry out, "Let's welcome our singer, Lady Kaya!" Everyone began clapping, and Usopp strained to see the young woman walking down the aisle towards the statue where she would sing. There she was! She was as enchanting in the dress as when the sniper had seen her in the first place, but then he realized that was obvious and he sighed unhappily at his idiocy. Her head was downcast in reverence, so he couldn't see her face. In an attempt to make it so she didn't notice him, he looked away, up into the sky. It was rather strange; there wasn't a cloud in the sky, only one dark object, a bird… circling lazily overhead…

Kaya finally reached the statue, and the podium, where she was to sing, but Usopp wasn't looking at the woman. That bird… was too large to be a bird of prey… was it… a gargoyle…? No… Much too fat for that… He squinted, and saw that it was getting bigger. The bird was descending… Then, Usopp's eyes widened… it was a monster! He jumped up and Meri gasped, "Master Usopp, what are you…?"

"Up! Up!" Usopp pointed, "Look UP! It's a monster!" Everyone stared up at the sky, finally spying the giant owl that was swooping down upon the ceremonies. Chaos ensued as the villagers leapt up and rushed away, screaming. Usopp, however, even with his damaged body, fought against the surging crowds, straight towards the only woman who wasn't moving: Kaya, "Kaya! Kaya, get away from here! KAYA!"

Kaya looked up and picked out the long nosed man out of the crowd, "U… Usopp! Usopp! What are you doing? I told you! I told you not to come! Go away! Go away!"

"Lady Kaya!" Meri shouted as he stood from where he sat, "Lady Kaya, come over here! Master Usopp and I will…"

"I can't…" Kaya cried as the owl dropped down next to the young girl, "I can't leave… It's…"

"The Shadow Master has need of her, Chupapa!" The owl spoke, and before everyone's eyes, he transformed into a full human form, and Usopp gasped. It couldn't be… he was an Animalian, a half human, half animal… THING! He never actually BELIEVED they existed when his father had told stories about them, but here he was; an owl that could turn into a human! He had a fat, round body, and his mouth, stretched across his face, had a zipper upon his lips…? Usopp shouted aloud even as the Animalian grabbed the young woman, who simply whimpered, but did not struggle, "She's a great singer! She may even be able to sing the Bard's Song! I need to take her away now, thanks a lot for the sacrifice, Mister Mayor, Chupapapa!" The Animalian suddenly transformed again, but this time, owl wings sprouted from his back, and he zipped his mouth back up; then lifted off with a screaming Kaya in tow.

Usopp turned slowly towards the mayor, who was hiding under a chair. The Animalian couldn't keep a secret, apparently, so before the young man rushed off in pursuit of Kaya's kidnapper, he glared at the mayor, "I'll get to YOU… later," he hissed, and then he tossed his crutch aside.

"Master Usopp!" Meri cried, rushing to the sniper's side, "Your wounds haven't healed yet! You can't hope to rescue Kaya in that condition!"

"Shut up!" Was the answer the butler received, and Meri took a step back as Usopp shouldered his pack, wincing a bit from the pain it caused on his ribs, "I have to do whatever I can to save her. It's the least I can do for repaying her saving me!"

"M… Master Usopp! Master Usopp, WAIT!" Meri shouted as Usopp rushed off, pouch and bow in tow. He needed to save Kaya!

"Don't worry, Kaya…" Usopp whispered under his breath, even as he willed the pain away… He WOULD save her. He would prove to everyone that he WASN'T useless…

"HEEEEEY!" The Animalian stopped mid-flight at the bank of the river, turning slightly to look at the sniper, his arm still wrapped around the quivering Kaya. Usopp splayed his legs apart, and even as they shook from fright, he put on a brave, lying face, and pulled out his slingshot, "Drop the girl or you're going to get it!"

"Usopp, run!" Kaya screamed, but she cried out as the Animalian dropped her to the floor, and he continued flying, even as he held his hands out in the air. In his hands appeared a dark bow, and a shadowy arrow… He unzipped his lips, and said with a smile on his face:

"Perhaps you would like to try and best me with a bow?" The Animalian asked, "I'll have you know that even if I'm weak against the bow and arrow, I am a master at it! See if you can beat Fukuro, the Owl, at a bow!"

Usopp dropped his slingshot and unslung his bow. A smile appeared on his face as he softly drew an arrow from his quiver, "Gladly!"

---

"Usopp! Usopp, NOOOOO!" Kuina suddenly screamed, and everyone jumped as the young princess snapped awake, looking around, "Where? Where is he? Usopp! Where are you?"

"What are you talking about?" Luffy asked, "We were looking for Usopp, remember? We don't know where he is!"

"Across… across the river…" Kuina looked like she was seizing up, clutching her bedsheets and shaking her head back and forth, "Across the river! Usopp's in danger! Usopp, stop!"

"Just tell us where he is," Zoro said, standing. He carefully picked his sister up from the bed, and she attached herself to her brother as she shook, her eyes wide, "Come on, we'll help Usopp out."

"Right!" Nami said, following Zoro out of the hut. Luffy stood up, but looked down at the crown on the floor next to where he was sitting. He hesitated, and finally nodded. He rushed out of the hut, after his friends, leaving the rusty crown alone upon the ground.

---

Usopp cried out as he drew the bowstring back, his arm was screaming in pain. He didn't give up, he COULDN'T give up! He would beat this monster, and save Kaya!

"Usopp, please!" Kaya cried from the floor as Fukuro aimed his bow, "Don't do this! You'll…"

---

"Die!" Kuina cried as Luffy, Nami and Zoro (carrying his seizing sister) hopped rocks on their way across the river, "Usopp can't beat that monster! He won't be able to make it! He'll die!"

"Then we'll just have to stop him!" Luffy said, hopping onto the opposite bank, where Usopp was now located, and smiled at the others, "We'll save Usopp, or else he can't be reunited with…"

---

"Sanji…" Usopp murmured, trying to focus his eyes, which were being blinded by the pain in his ribs; his arm, "H… help me… I don't… I don't want to be useless anymore!"

"Usopp…" Kaya moaned, "please…"

"Ready! Set!" Fukuro shouted. Without another word of warning, the two arrows whizzed through the air.

"Usopp!" Kaya screamed as the sniper's arrow flew in a slight angle, barely hissing past Fukuro's head. The monster's arrow, however, met its mark, and slid easily into the young man's forehead, and he dropped to the floor, unmoving.

---

"NOOOOOOO!" Kuina grabbed at her brother, and screamed aloud. Zoro had to stop moving as she thrashed and screamed and sobbed for her friend, as if asking him to return, "Usopp! Usopp, NOOOOOOOO!"

---

"USOOOOOPP!" Kaya struggled against the Animalian as he lifted back into the air, with her in his grasp. She kicked and screamed and reached out in a vain attempt to hold the lifeless sniper's hand, one more time…

TO BE CONTINUED…

---

Rawr Cliffhanger! Please review or something.

I love Kaya so much...

OH, extra candy if you can find out where the Animalian comes from in the actual OP Manga/Anime! hehehehe...


	10. Desertion and Reunion

Welcome back, everyone! Now, before I forget, here's the bio for Robin:

Robin is a priestess. But not just any priestess, she is the High Priestess of the Holy People, also known as "Those Who Should Not Exist". The Holy People once lived upon the Holy Isle, but for reasons spoilerish, they have been removed from their homeland and forced to wander the world. After a gruesome war with the Animalians, the Holy People have settled down and founded Guila, of which Robin rules as High Priestess. Because she was chosen by God to protect the Holy People, she has the ability to summon angelic beings of the heavens to protect her.

Despite her bio appearing, she will not join the group for a while. Just wait until she comes along, you'll be glad you did. Now, if you will:

READ ON!

---

The Bard's Song

Chapter 8, Desertion, and Reunion

Chopper groaned as he felt something placed upon his forehead, and then he heard a young, childish voice address someone else in the room, "Robin! Robin! The Animalian has woken up!" Chopper opened his eyes, and the girl, dressed in a simple dark dress, gave a happy squeal and rushed to the older woman's side. Despite the scream, she seemed awfully happy, and she was tugging on the woman's robes, "Robin! Robin! What are you going to do, Robin?"

The reindeer blinked at the extremely tall woman, dressed almost regally. Her robes seemed to be woven in the style of holy attire, as if she were a nun, or a priestess. Upon her head, however, was some headgear that made her stand out even more. It was a bishop's miter, so tall that it made her seem like a giant, especially to the tiny reindeer. Chopper gave a cry and hid under the sheets at the sight of the woman. Of course, this meant he was hiding one eye, and poking the rest out as he examined the two females.

The little girl laughed aloud, "Robin, he's a funny Animalian!"

"I wonder…" The woman known as Robin whispered, approaching the reindeer, and Chopper gasped as he felt her place a hand on the top of the little animal's head, "I doubt this little one really is an Animalian, Olivia…"

"What do you mean?" Olivia asked, "He looks like a reindeer Animalian…"

"But he doesn't act like one…" Robin replied. Chopper gave a quick intake as he heard her speak again; this time addressing him, "Don't worry, little one. I have no intention of harming you." Chopper looked up at Robin, and she smiled at the reindeer, "It's okay, I can feel that you aren't here to hurt us, so I won't hurt you."

Chopper looked at the woman's eyes, and he saw that they shone with such beauty and truthfulness that he nodded and sat up, "So your name is Robin?" He asked, "My name is Chopper!"

"Robin, he TALKS!" Olivia cried, "Doesn't that mean…?" As Olivia tried to talk to Robin about the fact that Chopper probably was an Animalian, the reindeer got a good look at the young girl. It made him gasp; Olivia looked just like Robin, but much younger. Her hair was short, but her hair was the exact color of the priestess, and they shared the same smile… It… it was as if they were the same person, only… stuck in the same time…

He suddenly snapped out of it, and shook his head at Olivia's accusations, "I'm not a… whatever you call it. I'm really a reindeer! A normal, honest to goodness reindeer!" Chopper explained quickly, "It's just that a wizard cast this spell on me, and I turned into this…" He looked away sadly, and then suddenly looked back up at Robin, with wide eyes, "But… But wait, where am I, anyway?"

Robin gave a small smirk, "Well, no sense in keeping it from you. You are in Guila, the last bastion of the Holy People… of those who should not exist…"

---

Kuina continued to sob into Zoro's chest, even as the three approached the still form of Usopp. One arrow, a shadowy purple and still quivering, was lodged in his forehead, and Nami shuddered, even as Luffy dropped to his knees, staring at the prone figure of the former sniper.

"D… Dammit!" Luffy screamed, grabbing clumps of grass and throwing them every which way (Nami even had to dodge one that was practically thrown directly at her), "Usopp! Usopp! Speak to me! Wake up! Wake UP!"

"Kuina, Kuina, you have to try!" Nami shouted, tears stinging her eyes, "Kuina! You have to try! Try and heal him!" Zoro helped his sister stand as Nami wrenched the dark arrow from the sniper's forehead; it disappeared in her hands. Kuina placed her hands on her friend's head, and prayed, hoped, wished, asked God that He would save Usopp.

"Please… God…" Kuina cried, her eyes filled with tears, "Bring him back… please… save him. Please… please…" But it was no use. His pulse disappeared, and his body grew cold. Kuina stopped asking, and instead began to sob, "It… it's no use… he's… he's…"

"Usopp…" Luffy hissed, "You… why did you try and fight…? You… didn't you know you couldn't… have won…?" The four stared at the body, and an uneasy silence wafted through their minds. Could it be? Was he really… truly, dead?

"Oh… oh God!" The group looked up to see a young woman, covering her mouth with her hands, "He… he really…"

"Listen, lady!" Zoro said quickly, realizing where this was going, "We didn't do anything to him! He was our friend! We…"

"He shouldn't have gone to protect Miss Kaya…" The girl said. She bit at her nail, closed her eyes, and nodded, "Right, pick him up. We need to bring him to the temple," The people looked at her, and she smiled, "You see, I'm a priestess in training. The father can revive him with his magic…"

Kuina smiled, and Zoro chuckled, "Well, what are we waiting for? Luffy, help me with him! The faster we go, the faster we can get him revived!"

Nami shouted aloud happily, and Luffy leapt up, "Alright, Zoro! Let's do this!"

---

"Oh my…" The priest cried as the group brought Usopp into the bright, opalescent church, "what brings you to this church of God, my children?"

"Come on! Isn't it obvious?" Zoro shouted ("you mustn't shout in a church, Zoro!" Kuina tried to tell him), "We need you to bring our friend back from the dead! This lady said you could do it!"

"Of course I can. The Lord will give back his lambs if He so desires it. I will take your friend and bring him back from the dead. I require a donation of 100 GPs to do so, however. This isn't a problem, right?"

"Wait…" Zoro said, instantly suspicious, "How are we REQUIRED to give you a DONATION?"

"Here! Take it!" Luffy said, even as Nami protested ("I could haggle him down to 80!" was her reason). The young man practically threw his money purse at the priest, "Please, Father! Bring Usopp back! He's our Nakama…"

The priest blinked at Luffy's strange word, but shook his head as the money entered his hand and he gave it to a young woman, asking her to take it to their coffers, "Now then, just lay him on the floor here…" After Luffy and Zoro did as they were told, the priest threw his hands into the air, and said in a mystifying voice, "My Lord! Bring back your servant, so he may serve you once again!" And Zoro looked around with wide eyes. The air was suddenly filled with trumpets that sounded holy and awe inspiring. The prince hoped no one else died anytime soon, he really didn't want to mess with the afterlife anymore until he was DEAD. Seriously…

---

Usopp had seen the bright light at the end of the tunnel. He walked through it, wanting, so much, to find what the wonderful smell came from. He could see a wonderful, perfect world, so perfect he was sure he could never able to describe it to his friends. He took a deep breath in, his eyes closed, and he gasped when he heard a familiar voice, "Hey, Usopp, you like it here?"

The sniper whirled around. There, standing before him, was a woman he missed very, very much, "M… Mother…" Usopp whispered, still unable to believe it.

Bakino laughed at her son, "Is it that surprising? I've only been dead for nearly a decade. Where else do you think I'd be?" Usopp looked away, blushing a bit. So that was it, then. He did die. He died before he could save Kaya. He looked up when he saw his mother approach him, and he felt his mother take him in her arms, clasping him close, "Darling… is something the matter? I thought you were going to be brave? What are these tears for?"

Usopp hadn't noticed that he was sobbing, and he wrapped his arms around his mother's ethereal body, "I just… wish I could have done more before… I…"

"Shhhhh, shhhhh, Darling," Bakino pulled away from her son, wiping some of his silvery tears from his nose, "don't cry. Usopp, listen. You can do more. If you want to."

Usopp looked around, at the perfect world, and sighed, "I… I want to stay here… it's so beautiful… but…" He turned to his mother, nodding determinedly, "But someone needs to save Kaya…"

"That's my boy," Bakino said, smiling, "You were always this way… well; I guess there's no stopping it. Say 'hi' to your father to me…" her voice was fading, the world was fading, and Usopp began to panic.

"Mother! Mother! Wait! What's happening? Mother, please!" He reached out to touch her, but no matter how much he reached he could not touch her. It was as if he had become corporeal again. She simply shook her head, smiling.

"Shhhhh, Darling," Bakino said, waving at her son as he began to fall through the floor and into a dark abyss, "Don't worry. You'll be fine… I'll always be watching you. From up here…"

"Mother! Wait! I still want to talk to you! Mother!"

---

"Hu… huh?" Usopp groaned, and Kuina gave a happy cry as the young sniper sat up from his location on the floor, and looked around, "Wha… where… who?"

"You're alive! Usopp!" Kuina clutched the sniper close to her, burying her face in his chest, "Don't ever scare me like that again!"

"Ku…ina…?" Usopp whispered, letting the princess hug him as he stared at the others around him, "H… Hey… Luffy!"

"I messed up a spell," The wizard said, smiling, "I needed to make it right."

Usopp nodded slowly when he heard the young man's explanation. He was about to open his mouth; ask how they found him, but his eyes suddenly widened in realization. He took Kuina's shoulders and slowly drew her away from the embrace, "I… I can't stay here…"

"Huh?" Nami asked, "You aren't honestly thinking about going after whatever monster that was that just killed you! We already lost 100 GP because of you!"

"Quiet," Zoro interjected, making Nami hiss at the prince, "What are you talking about, Usopp? You can't honestly think that you can go after this monster now…"

"Not… now…" He muttered, dragging himself from the floor. Kuina looked up at the young adventurer from her kneeling position on the marble, and the princess blinked as Usopp strode determinedly from the temple, "I have… something else… I have to do…"

Zoro looked at Luffy, who shrugged at the prince. Then, the party rushed after the sniper. Just what important thing did he have to take care of, anyway?

---

"Where IS she?" Usopp roared, trying his hardest to lift the mayor of the town off his feet. It wasn't working well, so he had to let Zoro do the work, "Where did that Animalian take her to?"

The rest of the group was understandably in the dark, but Nami seemed to be keeping quiet because of some other reason. Nigor's mayor struggled in Zoro's hands, "Please! Please, let me go! I did it for the town!"

"Bull!" Usopp shouted. It was the first time Kuina ever saw him look so… threatening… She shivered inwardly as he continued his "interrogation", "Why the hell would you sacrifice a young girl for your town? She's PART of it, dammit!"

"You don't understand!" The mayor screamed, covering his face with his hands, even as Zoro growled at the man's weakness, "If I didn't do it… he… the Shadow Master… he said he'd level the place! If I didn't give her as a sacrifice, Nigor would have been destroyed!"

"His arm has already reached this far out…" Luffy murmured, low enough for it to be unheeded by the others.

"So you'd rather let one… wonderful girl… die… because you're too afraid to stand up to him yourself?" Usopp hissed.

"What could I do? Not even YOU could stand up to his monster!"

That struck a nerve with the sniper. He raised his hand to strike the mayor, but lowered it slowly, and turned on his heel, "Come on, we're leaving."

"Usopp…" Kuina whispered.

"He won't tell us anything. Too afraid to get caught up in it further, the bastard," Usopp turned around, "So if we keep hanging around here any longer, who knows what the Shadow Master will do to her!"

"Who's HER?" Zoro growled, dropping the mayor roughly to the ground as the rest of the group followed behind Usopp, who was striding from the town hall with a strange fervor that seemed alien to the normally scared, frightened young man, "Could you at least give us SOME explaining while we're wandering around aimlessly, looking for this Shadow Master? I mean, we're all after him too, but at least WE have an excuse!"

"Master Usopp! Master Usopp!" The prince was interrupted (and he looked angry enough to gut the offender) by a strange man, who resembled a sheep and was wearing a nice butler's outfit, "Where are you going, Master Usopp?"

"Where else, Meri?" Usopp replied with a shrug, "I need to repay Kaya for what she did for me… I can't let her stay in the clutches of those monsters…" Meri blinked as Usopp looked away, rubbing his nose, "I need to save her…"

"I… I see…" The butler murmured. He seemed to be in thought for a moment, but before anyone could ask what was going on, he spoke up again, "I guess I cannot stop you, but I may be able to assist you. No doubt at some point you will be in need of a boat. There is but one that will be able to accommodate you… At one point, this boat carried a great king, his wife, and the one who sang The Bard's Song across the world. It would be in your best interest to find it and use it."

"Please, can you tell me where it is?"

Meri smiled his sheep smile, which made the rest of the group back up a step from fear of the scary looking face, "I don't know exactly where it is… but the biggest port on this continent is called Jion. I'd recommend heading through Jenima up north, and then go through the mountain city of Ythsa. You'll end up in Jion after climbing down the mountain pass. It's… a different ship…" Meri smiled, "It's called 'The Going Merry'."

"Jion, right," Usopp said, nodding, "Meri, thanks for your help. I only wish I could have saved her sooner."

"You needn't worry yourself," Meri replied, his hands clasped behind his back, "I will pray for your safety as you collect Lady Kaya. Also… if her father returns… I will tell him of your bravery. Perhaps he will decide to join you."

"Sounds like an idea," Zoro interjected, "If we knew what the hell was going on!"

Usopp finally nodded, and turned to the group, "Yeah, I'll explain everything to you now." He was about to speak to them, when suddenly he quirked an eyebrow, "Wait… where's Sanji…?"

The rest of the group shuffled their feet and hemmed and hawed, until Luffy suddenly proclaimed, "He's probably wandering around in the Kyrol Desert, I'd bet." There was silence as Usopp stared, wide eyed, at his friends.

---

"Come on!" Zoro shouted after Usopp, who was charging back to the river, intent on finding Sanji again, "He was the one who said he didn't want to be an adventurer! Why are you so hung up on seeing him again?"

"Awww, don't be mad, Zoro," Luffy said with a smile as the rest of the group huffed and puffed alongside the running sniper, "This is a good workout."

"Workout?" Zoro roared, pointing north, where the kingdom of Jenima was located, "We're going the OPPOSITE way of Jenima!"

"I don't… mind much," Nami said between gasps, "Lor… Lord Sanji… We will… need him…" Kuina looked at Nami, and smiled a bit. The bard was really sad to find out that Sanji wouldn't be adventuring anymore, so Treson's princess figured that Nami was hoping that Usopp could convince Sanji to continue wielding the Plexiglas Sword.

Everyone else was gasping for air as Usopp finally led them into the Kyrol Desert. There, wandering amongst the dunes was a young knight, shuffling across the sands. They had finally caught up to him by following his tracks in the sand, "Sanji! Heeeeey! Sanji!"

The Chosen One's ears pricked up and turned to the smiling sniper. He looked quite surprised at his appearance, and the gasping group behind him, and the fact that the sniper had attached himself to the young man's leg, "Don't ever go away! Everyone said you were stopping! Why would you ever want to stop adventuring? Tell meeeeeee!"

"What the hell?" Sanji shouted, staring at the others as they collapsed into the sand, gasping for air. They were sweating from head to toe. Usopp was the only one who seemed still able to speak, "Why… are you here?"

"I died to get here to speak to you!" The sniper cried, stretching the story, just like he usually did, "I can't let you just throw your adventuring away like this! We're a team!"

"Get off of me, you piece of crap!" Sanji cried, shaking his leg, attempting to throw Usopp off of his limb, "You have no say in my life! It's not yours, dammit!"

"Lord Sanji, please, listen to us…" Nami said, "You're one of the Chosen Ones, one decended from Gold Roger's line… You have a responsibility to…"

"Lady Nami…" Sanji stopped his shaking to look at the bard. He looked away sadly, "My responsibility… was to protect innocent people… but, I can't… I can't protect even one person…"

The angsty scene was interrupted by rumbling. Kuina gave a cry and Zoro looked about, "It's an earthquake!" The prince shouted as everyone ducked and covered their heads.

"No!" Luffy shouted, suddenly looking quite worried, "It… It can't be! We don't have any Caruebos! They'd know!"

"Know what?" Nami screamed over the rumbling, trying in vain to stand upright.

"It's the Kyrol Sandworm!" Luffy roared in response. All eyes went to Kuina, and she shook her head.

"I… I can't tell… we aren't… in danger… at least, none of you are… I can't feel anything…" The princess replied, thinking hard, "None of you are in danger! It can't be the sandworm!"

Everyone looked around, as if trying to look for the worm, even though it was subterranean. Sanji finally kicked the sniper from his foot, and looked at each of the other five, "None of us… in…" his head swerved to look at Kuina, and he gave a scream, "Princess Kuina! Watch out!"

The Chosen One's defensive instincts kicked in, and he rushed towards the princess, who was on the floor, unable to stand from the severe quaking. He launched himself from the ground, shoving Kuina so hard she fell backwards a half foot. It was at that moment a huge worm appeared from the sand, catching Sanji within its giant maw. Everyone stared, wide eyed, as Sanji's top half struggled against the mandibles of the fourty foot worm that attempted to drag the Chosen One further into its gullet, and Kuina screamed aloud, covering her eyes and crying loudly.

"You want some of this, you vile creature?" Sanji shouted, grabbing at his sheath. His eyes widened when he realized that he didn't HAVE his Plexiglas Sword, and he looked down to see Nami numbly pulling it from her inventory… Usopp covered his eyes as the Chosen One was swallowed alive, his screams still prominent within their minds.

"Ho…ly…" Zoro whispered as the Kyrol Sandworm started focusing itself on the others before it.

"What are we going to do?" Usopp screamed, attempting to crab walk away from the sandworm. Luffy and Zoro looked at other, and they smiled.

"What else?" The wizard asked, beginning to cast a spell.

"We're cutting the moron out of there!" Zoro answered, drawing his katana and preparing to attack with an Onigiri.

TO BE CONTINUED…

---

Reviews are nice! I'm sorry if it kinda sucks towards the end.

I had to cut it because it was getting too long if I added the next scene to it. Thanks for your patience!


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